Bring it On... The Holiday Card Challenge!

It’s coming… that dreaded time of year. Facebook posts of beautiful portraits of happy families in their matching jammies. Christmas cards with beautiful babies, beaming families… a loving mom, a serene dad, happy kids, and 2 dogs.

Raise your hand if you’ve ever felt “less-than” as you scrolled through Facebook--  like an outsider-looking-in at the idyllic American Dream-- a life that’s not yours.

I have. 

And even if you don’t want to be married, or don’t want to have kids, or are proud that you’re gender nonbinary… it still feels shitty. If even just for a moment.

Picture this: November 2018. Two years after my husband passed away. The thought of making holiday cards crossed my mind-- for the fleetingest, splitingest of seconds-- and then crumbled away like a 1000 year old piece of parchment. We didn’t fit. We weren’t a real family, just the two of us. A mom, yes. A cute kid, yes. But we had no dad. We had no Kendall and Collin (my stepkids). We had no Bobo (our dog). We required no minivan to transport just the two of us. 

I sighed, signed off of Facebook, and told myself I was too busy to send out holiday cards anyways.  

UNTIL a few months later. I decided to FIGHT FIRE WITH FIRE. None of us should feel shitty. ALL of our lives are beautiful. And ALL of us deserve to celebrate our beautiful lives openly and joyfully.

I commissioned a well-respected photographer (thanks Jeramie Lu!) to create beautiful portraits of our beautiful family (which was, yes, just the two of us). And I resolved to send out holiday cards in 2019 or bust. And I did.

And I’m inviting you to join the challenge! This year… whether you’re 20 or 80, gay, straight, single, divorced, with human kids or fur babies… you owe it to yourself to celebrate the life that you’re living, and share it with the world!! And to take it one step further, HONOR yourself with professional photos*… find a photographer whose work you love, and TREAT yourself to a beautiful portrait that you’re proud to show the word. YOU. DESERVE. IT.

*Sidenote: if professional photos are too big a step right now, don’t let that stop you! Scroll through your phone for your favorite photos and use those! No excuses! And to eliminate excuses even more, Vista Print is super reasonable... find a coupon code, and make postcards to save postage and envelopes. Just do it!!**

**And when you do, please oh please show me! It’ll make my day!! Truly!

Post with these hashtags:

@midorijoyphotography

#TheLoveMyLifeProject

#RedefiningJoy

#HolidayCardChallenge

DO IT!!  Together we'll change the world!!