@nottelling I am purposely not sending out those types of cards because I just don’t like them. My in-laws sent out Christmas cards with pictures of both us and Mr R’s brother who also got married, unbeknownst to me. I don’t really care, they can do whatever, but I just feel like sending wedding pictures to people in the form of a holiday card is strange. No logical reason why.
We are, however, sending pictures to relatives overseas and to other close friends/family who couldn’t come. But really, it just seems like with facebook and whatnot, they don’t need yet another picture.
I don’t know. Plus, we’ve already sent pictures to anyone we though would want them or have requested them.
We’ve got friends who just write a long note, print it out holiday paper and mail as a letter. The ones that drive me nuts are where they just sign a card. This year, we’ll use the cards I never sent last year. I got them at some other discount place, maybe Tuesday Morning, cute and a bit retro.
An aunt used to send us E cards from Jacquie Lawson. They were very “her.” Only thing is, not much room for a longer message on the E cards I know of.
You could consider the “photo seasons greeting” type of cards from either Walmart, Costco, shutterfly, etc.
Costco cost is like 50 for $14, Walmart runs maybe $.40 per card. Then write any notes on the back.
You could also write a note and add holiday borders by cutting and pasting and printing it out on a color printer (as an alternative to buying holiday paper for the letter).
My favorite to receive are photo cards, and I have saved them and tuck them in my Christmas decorations box. Fun to look at them when they get pulled out every year. Funny enough, we don’t send them, go figure.
My favorite are also photo cards! Those are what I sent when the kids were young and not every year. It really is true that when you send, you receive lots. When you don’t, after a couple years, they dwindle drastically. The last I sent was a 2011 family photo we had taken professionally. Because it had been a few years after that, I didn’t receive many last year.
I was discussing this with friends last year and we believe it’s FB. We already know what evetyones kids look like on a constant basis, and converse with friends far away. The excitement of sending and receiving them doesn’t have quite the impact anymore. I have to admit I find it really boring to just open a card with a signed name.
I will admit that I really don’t look at the card itself, I am much more interested in seeing pictures and in notes people write in them. It’s kind of disappointing when the card just has a signature (or a printed name).
That said, I gotten only 2 cards so far - from a college friend and from a cousin. Neither is on FB, so this is really the only way I have to keep up with them. My friend’s card featured a picture of her family which I enjoyed seeing.
I have sent out holiday cards with 4 x 6 picture insert since the girls were born. I usually get my cards from Exposure. A box of cards (~20) are around $20. I like Exposure cards because they are very nice, the envelope has lining and card is nicely printed (not flimsy).
I was not going to send out any last years (first year of my divorce), but the girls insisted on the tradition. I send cards to the girls’ friend parents. They usually give me a list. My family and friends update their picture of my kids every year with my holiday card.
My sister and BIL moved a lot for his job during his career. (He was military.) They have many friends from overseas whom they don’t see very often, if at all. This group sends not only cards but the lengthy letters that some people do.
My sister, true to her OCD tendencies, keeps the letters and files them by family last name and year. She does this so, if and when she sees the people, she can reference names of children and their spouses, what the family has been up to, etc.
I find it to be totally over-the-top, but it works for her.
Back to the cost question, when I have sent in the past ( don’t send many currently - burned out on the bragging missives that I received), I’ve tried to find cards benefitting a charity. Habitat for Humanity has been sending me free cards that are attractive enough as has another children’s charity we support. I’ve also purchased from Chicago’s Art Institute in the past and Unicef. (although I’m becoming cynical -sadly - about that one)
I love sending, and especially, receiving! I decorate my family room with them. I like nice, simple cards and last year bought a couple of boxes at Barnes and Noble that I loved. They are made by Caspari. I tend to buy some each year but always have leftovers. The ones I used this year for some were the B&N box of 16 and it was $10. I think I probably got these for half price after Christmas of 2014. All my cards this year were written and mailed out last week as I’m away for a couple of weeks.
Generally send out a greeting on Facebook. About everyone I would send a card to is my friend on FB. I have a few friends that I still send an actual card to, with news
After reading this thread, I sat and stared at the boxes of Christmas cards waiting to be written and sent. I have been dreading this and looked upon it as a self imposed obligation. In the years past, choosing the cards, listening to Christmas music while I wrote a little note in each was a part of a very happy tradition. I used to enjoy receiving the cards from friends and family, looking at the artwork and reading the message. Now, it is another chore to be checked off the list.
Our lifestyle has changed along with family dynamics and family obligations. We chose to make all the everyday things in life less complicated. Last year, I gave up on my beloved live tree. One tradition was searching the hillsides in CT for the “perfect tree”, tagging it and cutting it down in December. The owner of the farm would have a fire going, music playing, farm animals for the kids to pet and serve warm cider. Well, we are spending most of the time in Florida now and only spend a few weeks in CT during the holidays. How I missed that tree last year, this year it doesn’t seem to matter. We leave for CT this week and I will put the Nativity set on a table, place a wreath on the door, lighted garland on the mantle, and an artificial tree in the family room and it feels good.
So, back to the cards. Last night, I decided to send cards with a little note to some of the older aunts, uncles and cousins and sent, via FB, a few private messages to my closer family and a general Christmas post for other friends and family. Today, I feel good!
I did a photo card of the kids every year from birth until 2-3 years ago when my sons stopped cooperating (and they were basically grown so no big change). I can’t tell you how much I treasure those pictures now. Maybe you could do a doggie photo card? I was seriously considering it this year.
I do think FB has changed Christmas card picture joy.
I love to send cards (though last year for some reason I really flamed out) and take that opportunity to think about every single person/family where I send a card. I try to hand write a little note in each one.
I never can decide what I think about newsletters. I used to think they were a little annoying. But now I’ve gotten to where I look forward to them. Go figure.
I love Christmas cards, period. Getting them, sending them. I have fine-point sharpies that I use to write the notes, and do a few every night while I watch TV, then I’ll mail them next week. I like the trend of New Year’s Cards, too – I have several friends who send their Christmas card in January, and that’s fun. I like the people who send me a really late one in obvious reciprocation, even. We do dramatic readings of the particularly obnoxious over-the-top letters full only of accolades and excess; I do appreciate Christmas letters full of the ordinary and banal as well.
Friends who aren’t family get a regular card, usually purchased the previous year at Barnes and Noble during the post-holiday fire sale. Family and closest friends get a picture collage card we usually make at snapfish or vistaprint. They aren’t as fancy as Shutterfly, but so much more affordable. I know they’ve seen many of the photos on Facebook, but I assume that like me, they are festooning the house with their holiday cards. Occasionally we will deliberately take a photo, knowing we’ll use it for the card. It is the best feeling to look around my house and “see” the people I love and care about, even if we aren’t together often.
My parents have taken a group picture every year of their 58 years of marriage and send it with their 100+ cards. The few years we haven’t managed to get all in one place at least once a year, we hold up a little photo of the missing people, with an explanation of why they aren’t there (“Job!” “Pregnant!” “Travelling” covers it all)
Count me in with the crowd that find nothing but a signature pretty boring. At the very least I like a photo card (multiple photos are even better), But my favorites are Christmas letters. There are still plenty of people who are not on Facebook. And even those that are, I may have missed something (or they just don’t post much) and this gives us a nice summary of their year.
I guess that’s why I’ve written a letter every year since the kids were small. I doesn’t really take me long, I find a few photos from our year (a nice walk down memory lane for me as well), and then plop those in with a letter. Pictures are a nice filler too if you don’t feel you have that much to say. I also pick one picture to make a photo card with and include that for those who like cards to display (as some have mentioned above, that they like to do).
I love cards too. We always do a photo card. Our kids and those of our friends are in big change mode and it’s amazing if you haven’t kept up to see them! I also keep those sent to me with photos. Walgreens is really inexpensive (like maybe 25 cents each?).
I have displayed them one of three ways…on the back of the front door, on the glass in my French doors or taped (hanging) on my bookcase. I have also seen them around door frames. I love to walk in and see them. I usually get and receive approx. 25 a year.
I was seriously considering it this year.