The biggest thing on my to-do list this each year (besides getting my gift shopping done early) is to take a Christmas card “photo shoot” with Kyle. I’m happy to announce (atleast for this year), we finally did it! It took a little bit of nagging because Kyle isn’t a huge fan of posing for pictures, but he knew it meant a lot to me. We ended up going with 3 different pictures, and decided to send them out randomly to friends and family. This way everyone got something different, which is a little abnormal to what people usually do.
Please excuse my puffy orange jacket.. It was freezing out! And yes, I cropped out our Starbucks cups for the final picture. Oops! They weren’t “professionally done” or anything like that, we just had a friend take them from my IPhone. Next year I’ll get a little more creative and probably plan ahead. But atleast we finally got them done! I already have tons of ideas for next year, depending on where we are.
In the process of taking these pictures, I’m reminded that the holidays can be a tough time for many, especially those with loved ones who are deployed. I know that next year may be a very different situation for us, and we’re so lucky to spend this year together. Among the creative ideas that I tried to choose from, there were quite a few for deployed families as well. It’s a great way to stay connected as a family during a time when it’s easy to feel very distant from each other. Here are some ideas that you can get creative with:
Separate Location Cards
This is an idea that I’ve seen floating around on Pinterest a lot lately. There are a lot of different styles for this picture, depending on where they’re deployed. Basically, you have someone take your picture where you are, while your loved one does the same. You later conjoin the two pictures either horizontally or vertically so that it’s one card. Some people hold signs, one saying “Happy” and the other saying “Holidays”, and things along those lines. You can get really creative with this one, and from what I’ve seen it’s such a cute idea!
Cropped In
Giving a little bit of humor to an otherwise sad circumstance, you can just crop them right in! It always comes out a little bit goofy because you can tell that they’re two separate pictures entirely, but you can make it more romantic if needed. I’ve seen this done with huge family Christmas cards where they plopped the cropped picture right in the middle. It definitely has a different appeal, but it works well with multiple styles.
Picture In Picture
Take a picture standing solo holding your deployed loved one’s picture. It gives a really romantic twist to your holiday cards, while still being creative. I’ve seen some really intricate cards where each person is holding a picture of the other. It gives a truly emotional touch to the card. I definitely shed some tears looking at all of the ideas!
Make It Funny!
This is a great way to involve kids and/or pets and make light of the situation. I’ve seen a lot of military holiday card that are just sad. But adding some humor in there makes it fun for everyone, and can help you loosen up and get a good laugh.
Skip The Picture
Don’t want to go through all that trouble? Skip it! There are plenty of pre made layouts you can use, such as this one I found on Etsy. Or go a step further and make your own! It’s a great way to be creative while still keeping things simple.
What are some holiday card ideas that you have used during a deployment? Any favorites?
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