It’s Christmas!! Well, not exactly, but it is the first day of December and for me that marks the true beginning of festivities. Buying presents, decorating the house, getting a tree, seeing all the lights, cosy evenings with a fire, Scandinavian box sets and cheesy films, baking with a lot of cinnamon… I love so many things about this time of year, and always feel an extra surge of gratitude for how fortunate I am to be able to enjoy all of these things and spend time with the people I care about.
This year is a little special – it is my first ever blogmas! For anyone out there who’s not sure what this involves, it is basically a challenge to post daily in the lead up to Christmas.
I’ve just hit play on the Christmas playlist for the first time this year, and I’m ready to write. For my first post, I wanted to talk about sending festive snail mail, since that is one of the things I am doing today. I love sending post, especially abroad to far-flung friends; if it wasn’t for the price, I’d be unstoppable at the post office.
Today I will be sending letters and presents to two of my closest (not according to geographical proximity) friends. Firstly, my Floridian pen pal of three and a half years who I met on Tumblr and have had back-and-forth transatlantic visits with over the years. And secondly, one of the best friends I made whilst living in Sydney last year.
Sending and receiving post is one of the best ways to connect with people who live too far away to visit in person. Don’t get me wrong, I am a big fan of modern technology, which connects us all in amazing ways, but seeing and opening a package from someone on the other side of the world feels so personal and tangible.
Do you like to send snail mail at this time of year?
List of all Blogmas posts:
Day 4 – Christmas in Paradise?
Day 5 – 7 Ways to Manage Social Anxiety at Christmas?
Day 6 – Top 3 Binge-Worthy Scandinavian TV Shows
Day 7 – Why did I start blogging?
Day 8 – My Winter Wanderlust Wish List
Day 9 – How to Make a Christmas Wreath
Day 10 – Homemade Vegan Mince Pies
Day 11 – What It’s Like to Backpack During the Festive Season
Day 12 – How I Consciously Chose Change in 2017
Day 13 – Reflecting on Gratitude
Day 14 – The Traditional Christmas Walk
Day 15 – How to Make Mantelpiece and Staircase Garlands
Day 16 – The Vegan Flavours I Bake With At Christmas
Day 17 – Dear 2017 Me: An Open Letter
Day 18 – Homemade Vegan Gingerbread House
Day 20 – Boys Toys, Girls Toys: The Pink and Blue Divide
Day 21 – Feeling Low at Christmas: 15 Self-Care Tips
Day 22 – Things I Want to Leave in 2017
Day 24 – 9 Of My Christmas Traditions
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Alys Journals 
Great post Alys! 💕 That’s is lovely you still send letters, I love sending and receiving post ☺️. Technology is great but hand written letters gives it such a personal touch ✍🏻💌. Looking forward to reading more of your posts! Happy Blogmas 😘 xx
Bexa | http://www.hellobexa.com
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Thank you so much, Bexa! It gives you such a lovely feeling I think 🙂 It’s definitely personal ❤ The feeling is mutual, I'm excited to follow your Blogmas too xx
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I love the idea of sending letters and little gifts to someone!! I would love a pen pal! Hope you have a merry blogmas my love xx
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It can be a lot of fun, just wish it wasn’t so expensive! I’d definitely recommend it 🙂 Thank you, you too lovely xx
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Sending and receiving letters is just the best. It’s nice to hear of someone who enjoys doing this as much as me!
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It really is! It makes me happy to see so many other people love it too. Thank you so much for your comment ❤
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I loved this post! Sending letters is so much more personal and special I think, a great way to keep in touch with people! Good luck with Blogmas x
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Thank you! It definitely is 🙂 You too x
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I completely agree! There’s no better feeling than opening the mailbox and seeing a letter addressed to you! I definitely want to start sending more mail overseas! I have a lot of relatives that I could send letters to! Good luck with Blogmas this year!
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That’s exactly it, it’s such an amazing feeling. You definitely should, it’s so rewarding 🙂 Thank you ❤
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I love snail mail at any time of year. One of my favorite past times is writing to my pen pals :)!
Kelly
http://www.thiswayandthatway.com
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I agree! It’s such a lovely activity 🙂
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Snail mail is the best. I send a lot too.
That’s ace that you have visited your pen pal! (And even better when they live in a tropical sunny place!)
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It is so much fun, I love it. Yeah, I do feel very lucky (and the sun is a massive bonus!)
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