This week has been a busy one! With recent events behind us, let’s shift to something a bit more delightful and hopefully less divisive: holiday decorating! Now, I know there are usually two camps—the “decorate-before-Thanksgiving” crowd and the “wait-until-after” folks. (Let me know in the comments which team you’re on!)

I love everything about the holidays, from the glow of lights warming up the house to the giddy joy of creating holiday magic for the kids. Normally, I’d wait until closer to Thanksgiving to decorate, but this year, I decided to dive in early. The kids had an extra day off school, and with my husband out of town for work, it felt like the perfect time to start transforming the living room. They were thrilled! Ella kept returning to admire the nativity scene, and we even invented a game called "mail" with the Santa mailbox—one of them played the "postman" while I had to keep retrieving “mail.” They loved it so much they asked to play again the next day after school!

No matter which team you’re on—pre-Thanksgiving or post—remember to let the kids join in. You’re building memories, and kids love feeling part of the holiday magic. I’m waiting for my husband to get our trees down from storage, so there’s still a bit of magic left to create. I’m looking forward to everything from Elf’s return and snow angels to driving around to see the lights—all our family traditions that bring a bit of whimsy to this season.

And here’s an idea to make the season cozier: I keep a basket of holiday-themed books in the living room for the kids to flip through all season long. Just having them nearby seems to spark more storytime and snuggles. Add a little hot chocolate, and you have the recipe for a beautiful holiday memory!

One last thing, I’m giving out 2 FREE tickets to the Holiday Boutique in Overland Park to the first three people to respond to this email! No strings attached—just email me back, and if you’re a winner, I’ll let you know. Good luck, and enjoy supporting local and shopping small!

As always, happy reading—and don’t forget, a book is a gift you can open again and again.

—Katie