I love getting Christmas Cards in the mail. The most welcome ones are the photo Holiday cards I receive from family and friends. My cousin lives near the beach and each year she searches for a holiday card that shows a beach scene. Most years she has no luck finding one. The traditional cards with their snowy winter scenes, while memorable, just don’t capture her idea of beautiful holiday scenery.
Once she got into digital photography, she was able to take incredible pictures of her beloved beach year round. Being a creative individual, one day she brought along a Santa hat, a red and green striped beach towel, and some candy canes. She staged a holiday scene with the hat on the back corner of her beach chair and the towel draped over the arm and onto the sand with a few candy canes placed on it.
Last week she sent me a preview of this year’s Christmas card. Her entirely unique photo Christmas card for 2008 shows the back of Santa’s beach chair sitting in the shade of a palm tree, looking out across the sunlit sand to the turquoise ocean where he seems to have gone for a swim. How delightful…and how “her.”
So, while I’m freezing this December putting up my outdoor Christmas lights, I’ll have a clear picture of how my cousin is toughing it out on a balmy beach. She always did make me smile.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I also live where winters are cold, so appreciate when I get a Christmas photo card from a warm spot. A sister and her husband are “snowbirds” now, and winter in Florida by the Gulf of Mexico. Their backyard is the 9th green on a golf course. Last year their holiday photo card was of a golf cart piled with gifts by a palm tree, next to some snowy white egrets strolling by. I thought they looked like a Sunshine State version of reindeer… really enjoyed that card.
Living in the Northeast, warm and balmy beach Christmases are never a part of me or my families Christmas celebration. I also enjoy getting holiday photo cards from my friends and family that are scattered across the country and some in much warmer climates. I think it is time that I plan to visit my uncle in Hawaii around the holidays – wishful thinking I know!
Your cousin’s charismas card sounds so lovely. I actually just moved to Hawaii and was very confused on what to do as my annual Christmas cards. My cards usually entail some winter festive background but my new environment seems to be lacking in that department. Your cousins cards have certainly given me some ideas to think about.
for sherrytree: was the golf cart card you received one that was purchased as is, or was it a photo they made themselves? if this was a pre-printed card, i would love to know where they purchased them from!!!