So ridiculous it's great.

I live in the woods, but somehow there are no evergreen trees.

If there were, I would have evergreen garlands around every square inch of my house around Christmastime. In reality, I haphazardly tried to make a mini thread of orange garland with some old clementines we had lying around and safe to say, the results were underwhelming.

Since there are no evergreens and decorating/crafting is not my strong suit, our other Chrismtas decorations are pretty sparse. I’m not a knick knack person. We have a few sweet things from early in our marriage like a manger scene carved out of a coconut from Hawaii, gifts from family passed down, some tacky reindeer Kira grabbed from a post-Christmas sale shelf when she was a toddler, and a simple nativity the kids love setting up with random characters. (The number of times Optimus Prime has visited the manger is touching.)

Our kids are at a fun age where simple gifts are thrilling.

Maybe that’s also due in part to the fact that we don’t really buy gifts or toys any other time of year except for 2 presents on their birthday, so it’s really novel for both them and for me.

I really enjoy saving up ideas through the whole year, choosing things specific to what they'll love, and seeing their faces light up with presents under the tree. We keep it simple most years (with some exceptions - we don't speak of the Barbie dream house Christmas).

We do have one tradition, though, that’s started to be something I really look forward to - a trip to Christmastown at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg.

The past 2 years we’ve gone with family friends which has made it extra fun. It’s crowded and excessive and exhausting and if you stop to think about the waste it can make your stomach hurt a little.

But ever since our trip, I keep thinking about Ingrid Fetell Lee’s book Joyful and what she calls the “aesthetics of joy.”

There are 9 of them, including Energy, Color, Play, and Celebration. Places like amusement parks exists to explode the senses with those four, especially.

While in line for the Scrambler at dusk, I heard one mom say to her bouncy kids in a calm but firm voice - “Mommy is feeling overstimulated, YOU MAY NOT TOUCH MY FACE.”

She is all of us.

And yet, I gotta say, it's always so fun and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

My kids aren’t in the – wait in line for 2 hours for a roller coaster – phase, yet, so it was mostly short stints of waiting and large, sweet rewards. Quality time. Laughter and play. Overpriced hot cocoa. Gorgeous lights covering the park in color.

Dumb games that cost dumb amounts for dumb prizes.

But the joy.

It's so ridiculous it's great.

Life is full of input that about being efficient and intentional.

See: precisely planned calendars and squeezed timelines and neutral colored everything.

It’s liberating to blow it all up for a day and put your brain where it can only possibly exist in the moment.

In the book, Lee quotes Dr. Stuart Brown who said –

"The opposite of play is not work; it's depression."

Let that sink in.

I won’t be in your inbox next week because it’s Christmas Eve and I’ll be filling stockings and prepping morning cinnamon buns. I hope you’re exactly where you need to be, too. (hint: it’s not in your inbox.)

Hugs to you and yours and if I haven't said it enough lately - thanks for being here and opening these letters week after week. I hope they're some little form of joy to your days.

// new + noteworthy //

A PODCAST // My podcast interview with brand photographer Nicole Hodgson is new this week on Photo Fuel and bursting with takeaways for anyone considering a creative life pivot, photography or otherwise. Take a listen here on Apple podcasts or on Spotify.

A RECIPE // The four-ingredient peanut butter balls that are the biggest hit in our family every season and easy button on gluten-free holiday cookies to gift to friends or neighbors.

A CAUSE // I recently learned about the Elephant Project when one of these famous art sculptures was donated to my kids school. At its core, It’s a fascinating example of trash to treasure, and if you look harder, the background is an inspiring story of the ingenuity, joy, and prospering ripple effects that can happen with art.

A LOCAL GIFT // Our part-artist, part-world-saving-spy-bot is going to love this invisible ink spy pen. and these putty tins are a hit across all ages (why do they all like slimy things? I’ll never get it.)​

A FIND // This overnight lip treatment is saving my life. I get super chapped lips in the winter but wasn't feeling a mortgage payment for some of the more highly-recommended lip masques out there so this one is doing the job just fine for an easy ten bucks.

A BOOK // Currently reading: Go as a River - another heartbreaker, but also beautiful and loyal and deep. Jury’s still out, but I keep going back to it. I need a book with some lightness to it. Taking recs for the holidays and next years book list please and thank you!

CREATIVITY | FAMILY | SIMPLE JOYS

On instagram @leahoconnell.photo