Go easy on yourself
If you’re like me you might be thinking, how can we possibly get holiday gifts ready in time when we are either quarantining or we have no money to shop? 2020 brought much difficulty, so maybe now it’s time to go easy on ourselves.
Connection is enough
My parents tell me, “Don’t worry about us, we don’t need anything,” which is mostly true. The real gift for them is connection with family: A phone/zoom call or holiday note, a grandchild’s artwork, or maybe a photo to hang on the fridge, will be appreciated and is enough.
I don’t think Christmas is necessarily about things. It’s about being good to one another.
-Carrie Fisher
Happy Holidays!
Before we talk gift ideas, let’s get into the spirit of the season with some video memories from our wonderful community.
This month I have 3 videos for you: The first is easy gift ideas. The other two are filled with past holiday memories of our town: Lyons Christmastime Memories and Lyons Holiday Parade of Lights 2018. Gather your family in front of the big screen, with warm cozy blankets, while we take you back a few years, to a time when we were all together, in a place we know and love: Lyons.
(Also: Look for Lyons Holiday Parade 2018 video at bottom of page)
Home recording gifts
Recording yourself and your family can be very special and personal and something you’ll really appreciate years later. When you give this gift, remember to keep a copy for yourself.
When I was in my twenties, I filmed once at my grandparent’s house, during our Thanksgiving. Everyone was just sitting and chatting together like they always did, nothing fancy, but it is a joy to hear their voices, now that some are no longer here.
My Dad’s family made an audio recording in the 1940’s, and it’s so fun to hear my Dad as a teenager and my Grandpa’s South Dakota accent.
In 1975, our family made a similar recording for my grandparents, who lived far away. With my mom accompanying me at the piano, I can still remember singing (and apparently tap dancing?) while my baby brother watched the wheels on the tape recorder go round and round. Whether audio or video, maybe there are performers in your family who are looking for an audience.
It’s not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving.
-Mother Theresa
Experiences as gifts
Gifts that can be experienced, such as tickets to a show, or signing up for a class are usually a fantastic gift option, but could be more challenging amidst the pandemic. A trip into the great outdoors could still be an option. This year IS different, and we can be satisfied with keeping it simple.
Making Memories
Now that’s a Gingerbread House!
How will you make new memories this year? Or celebrate old ones? It is healthy to open our creative floodgates to release and renew the old ways of doing things.
Take gingerbread houses, for example. A store bought kit only includes 6 pieces plus icing and decorations. Looks great on the box, but when you actually build it, can turn out being more difficult than you thought, and you really end up feeling like you could have used a few more resources to make it all come together successfully.
Maybe in 2021 we can re imagine more than just gingerbread houses. With inspiration and wisdom from our children and each other, we can think grand thoughts about re imagining policing and our education system, the same way we came together to rebuild Laverne’s Meadow Park after the flood. The park was good before, but look at it now! Let’s find new ways to meet the needs of everyone in our communities, in order to move forward together.
Shop Local
Looking for great gift ideas from our local businesses?
A resource for shopping locally is Rebecca Batson’s December 3rd article, from lyonsrecorder.org which provides a list of local Lyons Businesses and their gift ideas.
In addition, here are great gifts from local businesses and artists that I personally recommend:
Gift of music
Arthur Lee Land is a vibrant performer, songwriter, recording artist, bandleader, live-looper, producer and educator. Based out of Lyons Colorado, Arthur Lee Land renders a modern eclectic fusion of electrified Americana and acoustic driven roots rock. At the heart of “ARTHUR LEE LAND” is the creative songwriting collaboration of Arthur and his non-performing lyricist and wife Carol Lee.
Gift of movement
Dave Chase knows gifts that help us get outside safely in the fresh air are appreciated more than ever in 2020. Redstone Cyclery is open and online https://www.redstonecyclery.com/
Gift of food
Butter Sales Christmas Baskets
303-823-UMOO email orders/questions: shaunalee@bellalacrema.com https://bellalacrema.com/our-bistro
Bake your own favorite recipe for someone special using local ingredients. Find a gourmet treat from one of our Lyons specialty vendors. Shopping locally supports the small businesses in our own community. Have you thought about purchasing a gift card to a favorite place to eat in Lyons? Heck yeah, that’s a really nice gift, and it supports our town. A gift card, even if just for groceries, can make a great present.
For some, ordering online might be easiest. Most do offer online sales. Even Cherry Company is shipping pies!
Colorado Cherry Company’s menu full of yummy treats can be purchased online and shipped directly to your front door. Try a delicious homemade cherry pie. https://www.coloradocherrycompany.com/
The Colorado Cherry Company is a fourth-generation family business specializing in everything cherry, and berry. What started out as a roadside stand has now expanded to 3 store fronts across the front range. From our famous juices and ciders, to our mouth-watering cherry pies, it’s a Rocky Mountain stop you won’t want to miss.
Gift of clothing
Foxlilie – Handmade kids clothing and accessories built to last for comfort and durability. Our sustainably designed products feature art-inspired prints, are made with organic, well-crafted materials, hand silk screened using water-based, environmentally friendly inks and small-batch manufactured ethically in Colorado. https://foxlilie.studio/
Gift cards available:
https://foxlilie.studio/shop/gift-card
Otto’s corner
Gifts Made by You are the best gifts
A gift made by you, rather than purchased, is always special, because of the time and love put into it. Kate’s video Easy Gift Ideas has some easy and inexpensive ideas you can try. Upcycle!
Also
This photo candle is a homemade gift idea I found at itsalwaysautumn.com but I haven’t tried it yet myself. The photos must be printed on regular paper with laser printer (will not work with inkjet, & works best if photo has light background).
Check out Autumn’s video to see how she did it: https://youtu.be/IkAFGLnkw4E
or a link to her written instructions: https://www.itsalwaysautumn.com/make-personalized-candles-packing-tape-transfer.html
Make your own photo candles, these are really cool personal gifts that are inexpensive to make.
Thanks, Autumn!
Remember to recycle and reuse what you can, including cards, boxes, paper or bows. Fabric ribbon can be used again and again.
Gift of Love
One of the best gifts our family ever got was our little black and white kitten, Oreo.
Adopting a new pet (if you are ready for the responsibility) can be one of the best gifts, especially if you are rescuing an animal who has been waiting for a home. The love you will share with an animal will outweigh any item or thing. Your new friend may become one of your most precious gifts of all time.
When making your decisions, it can be tempting to order from amazon, but when possible, try to keep gift giving simple to support local artists and businesses in our own communities. Choosing local helps us all!
A few years back, our local food pantry, LEAF helped our family through a tough holiday time, and I am grateful. To quote a very wise young man, “If you let LEAF help you with food, you can use your money to buy other things you need.” Find out more:
Hi Kate!
Thank you for sharing your memories and thoughts here- what beautiful reminders they are of love and connection! I woke up this morning feeling parched from so much isolation. I was wondering what to focus on when I opened my email and saw your name and clicked on your link. Your videos feel like a balm! Being reminded that we are not alone in quarantine – inspires me to focus on sharing good thoughts and ideas too – and to follow through on them! Thank you Kate Hart, for your wonderful energy, ideas, and reflections! Happy Holidays to you and Andrew and the kids with love from your mountain neighbor, Marybeth
Hooray! I am glad for us to be able to connect here when we can’t connect elsewhere. I miss seeing you, neighbor. Take care! Kate
Kate– This was beautiful… and so inspiring. I don’t know how you can keep on creating these wonderful videos with lots of amazing images and great writing. I’m very impressed!!!