A Killer Dream, the 2021 Christmas Card Reveal, and Winners!

Every year, I wait until an image pops into my tiny cranium before starting my family Christmas card. With two engagements this fall, I wanted to include those events, but our growing family needed to do an activity together.

Would I go sappy this year?

Would we be doing something indoors or outside?

How would I use our collective pet menagerie? They were here for Thanksgiving. Hmmm…

When I finally came up with the idea, I wondered how to incorporate three drawings?

I slept on it and had the craziest dream:

I worked at a gift shop on the second floor of Grand Central Station. Yes. My dreams are insanely specific. My boss directed me to the messy greeting card display. As I rearranged the cards, I found an art project.

The narrow and thin booklet, crafted in heavy cardstock, was a lightweight photo album. A photograph of a smiling man and a woman peered out from a square cutout on the cover. Inside, someone had inserted photographs and had written memories underneath. They had stuck Post-it notes with phone numbers and ideas all over the project.

Wow.

I sat with some students at a long table to study the project and unmask the crafter. How had it ended up in the card rack? Why would someone leave it behind? So much work had already gone into the project. It was personal. It would be an amazing gift for someone.

That’s when my dream became a nightmare.

It was too dim to make out some of the notes and photographs. I flipped a light switch, and a broken extension cord electrocuted someone who held the other end. Good thing I killed somebody because I woke up and remembered the whole dream. Yeah, I have a pretty wild imagination.

My takeaway? I would make a trifold card this year!

The following week I sketched, inked, printed, and cut enough pieces for one hundred cards. I would put them together the next day.

But, I woke up in a cold sweat. A popup wouldn’t work! The paper would be too short inside for the card to fold inward. What would I do? I had already printed out the parts of the card. It was too late!

I drank a pot of coffee and tried several ways to fold it. Ha! It only had to be short on one side. The cards went together pretty dang easily after that. Whew!

My 2021 Lindau family Christmas card:

Insert drumroll here…

The front of the card:

The winners of this year’s card are:

Renee from Craves Adventure nailed it with her engagement guess!

Roxy picked the rest from a hat.

Roxy picked:

Writing to Freedom!

Philosopher Mouse of the Hedge!

Words from Anneli!

John from Las Vegas Photoblog!

And two extra winners since I made so many:

Lynn from Life after 50!

Hugh from Hugh’s Views and News! Hopefully you will get yours before 2023. 🤣

Send me your addresses at susielindau@gmail.com.

Thank you to everyone who left a comment!

I love my blogging family. Imagine what that Christmas card would look like.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of you. May you find peace, happiness, fun, and adventure throughout the holidays and in the New Year!

How are you celebrating the holidays this year? What holiday tradition is your favorite? Are you a Christmas cookie eater?