Embrace the holiday hot mess! Find joy, laughter, and relatable moments in the season’s messiness—because imperfect holidays are the best ones.
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Silent Night? All is calm? All is bright? Uhh… Not exactly.
The holidays bring SO much wonder and magic and sparkle. They bring joy and excitement and celebrations.
They also bring a whole lot of stress and busyness and never-ending lists of things that needed to be done yesterday. The holidays can take a person who is mostly sane and reasonable the rest of the year and turn her into a hot mess.
Not me, of course. 🙄
Kidding. I am just as much of a hot mess as anyone else this time of year — a bigger mess than some. I’m juggling changing family dynamics (my son is in his first semester of college), running three businesses during the busiest retail season of the year, and everything else that comes with being a woman and a mom during the holidays.
And here’s the thing. Stress can get in the way of the joy and the magic. If you let it. But here’s something I’ve learned. If you look hard enough, you can find the joy of the season, even in the midst of the hot mess.
Sharing My Holiday Hot Mess with Y’all
As women, and especially as moms, it helps to know we’re not in this alone. Remember potty training or homework battles or endless driving to practices and games? Knowing other moms are going through the same thing somehow makes it a little easier. And helps us find the funny moments in the middle of the mess.
That’s the why behind the email series I’ve been writing this holiday season. I call it my “Holiday Hot Mess” and it’s a peek behind the scenes of my own hot mess – a mix of the business and the personal side of my life.
I’ve talked about everything from my not-so-mild obsession with finding a Walmart Nutcracker (and yes, I did find one, I’m almost done painting him, and it did bring me as much joy as I thought it would!) to the unwelcome return of my high blood pressure (ugh, but getting it back under control).
I shared my investigation of a noise in my backyard that sounded suspiciously like a rattlesnake. And yes, when you live in Texas, that’s actually a possible answer to, “What’s that sound?” The part that made it really great was when the snake guy came over and didn’t find anything. He’s “pretty sure” there’s no rattlesnake. So… yeah.
I talked about hosting Thanksgiving when I’m someone who doesn’t cook, adjusting to my home-from-college son, and loving having him home while remembering just how loud, messy, and full of energy he is.
The emails are fun to write and they help me find the humor and the joy in these silly or, in the case of the maybe-snake, kinda scary situations. And even better, the people who are getting the emails are loving them. Just like I’d hoped they would.
If you’d like to get on my email list and get in on the hot mess and all the happenings at Framed, subscribe HERE.
There’s Joy to Be Found, Even in the Mess
There is joy to be found, almost everywhere you look. And when things go wrong – and they will – it helps to remember something. The best memories, the ones you and your family will remember for years to come, often come out of those less-than-perfect moments.
Holiday joy and blessings aren’t about perfect decorations or elaborate displays of baked goods or family celebrations where everybody looks and behaves perfectly.
Joy comes from being with the people you love and doing your best not to let the stress steal any of that joy. So while you’re doing all the things that make the holidays magical for your family, take a minute for you.
Have a glass of wine or cup of coffee and just soak in the season. The sights, the sounds, the things that are special to you and your family. And smile when you remember some of those moments from the past when things going wrong ended up being so very right.
I’m wishing you a holiday season filled with imperfect moments of joy!
And remember, we’re here for you. If your gift list is stressing you out, let us help. We have SO MANY great options, perfect for the teens and women on your list. The best part? We’ve put together gift sets and bundles that are giftable just as they are. Easy.
SHOP FRAMED!
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