• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

A Field Trip Life

Books, places, and books that take you places

  • About
  • Books
    • Evie’s Field Day: More Than One Way to Win
    • Tess & The Waves
    • George The Giraffe Books
    • Raven’s Gift: A Feathered Flight of Faith
    • Nancy Bess Had a Dress
  • Author Visits
    • Invite Claire
    • Events
  • Field Notes
    • Book Reviews by Claire
    • Latest News in Your Inbox
  • Resources
  • Contact

To Card or not to card? The Christmas card question

December 18, 2018 Claire Annette Noland 5 Comments

I love receiving mail and this is the time of year when my mailbox overflows with greetings from friends and family. I display the cards and love seeing what has transpired in the lives of those I care about but don’t often see.

I send out card but there is always a problem. Namely, the family photo. As our family grows, it is harder to get everyone together and looking at the camera at the same time. Eyes closed, heads turned, and a toddler who doesn’t think posing is fun. We all went to San Francisco together in August and I thought we pulled off the Christmas miracle picture but… it wasn’t focused and it turned out completely pixalated. We can’t take another family picture because four of the family are now living in Central America. Oh, well. I’m still trying to figure out what to do.

In the meantime, I’m getting out the Christmas books. Here are a few featuring Christmas mail:

In 1920, after the birth of his first son, J.R.R. Tolkien sent Letters from Father Christmas to his four children. Each December, a heavily illustrated letter written with spidery handwriting arrived at their home in Oxford. The letters chronicled Father Christmas’ adventures and the shenanigans of his assistant, North Polar Bear. The letters changed as the children grew as “Father Christmas” responded to letters the children wrote to him. The collection of letters and illustrations were collected and edited by one of his daughter-in-laws after his death.

 

The Jolly Christmas Postman
by Janet and Allan Ahlberg
William Heinemann 1991

The Jolly Christmas Postman continues to be a family favorite. Our favorite postman delivers Christmas mail to the fairy tale characters that live in the village. The letters, games, catalogs, and booklets are tucked into envelopes within the book.

 

We’ve owned this book for a long time and have somehow managed to keep all the pieces which will now be enjoyed by the next generation.

 

Follow the Star all the way to Bethlehem
by Alan and Linda Parry
Word Publishing 1994

Follow the Star uses letters, games, announcements, and activities to creatively retell the Christmas story. There is an angel that brings a big announcement, a maze for the wise-men to follow, and a lift the flap page to show that there is no room in the inn. This is out-of-print so it might be hard to find one with all the pieces intact.

 

My Pen Pal, Santa
by Melissa Stanton (author) and Jennifer A. Bell (illustrator)
Random House 2013

In this sweet picture book, Ava strikes up a correspondence with Santa. She continues writing through the year and Santa answers her many questions including whether he is real or not.

 

Going through a box of Christmas decorations I found an unopened letter from my oldest daughter to Santa. Should we open it?

 

Thank you for stopping by. May your mailbox be filled with wonderful cards and packages.

Merry Christmas!

Filed Under: Books, Christmas Books, picture books Tagged With: Christmas books, Christmas mail, Follow the Star all the way to Bethlehem, Letters from Father Christmas, My Pen Pal Santa, The Jolly Christmas Postman

Previous Post: « Three Books for Kids Who Like Science Experiments
Next Post: Read Your World! A Multicultural Children’s Book Day Review of The Giant Turnip »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Trine says

    December 20, 2018 at 1:14 am

    Lovely festive post! I must find Letters from Father Christmas.
    I have been on a quest for the complete wonderful family picture for years.
    As a result I sent out a Paperless Post with a nice one of Gino and me. Oh well.

    Reply
  2. Tina Cho says

    December 20, 2018 at 2:31 am

    I agree that it’s hard to get that perfect family photo, especially with teens who DON’T want their picture taken! But I have 1 that will do and will post on Facebook soon. Merry Christmas! Oh, I loved seeing the old script on the Father Christmas letter, as I’m into calligraphy.

    Reply
  3. J Lenni Dorner says

    January 7, 2019 at 4:20 am

    Deliver de-letter de-sooner de-better … ha ha ha. That’s great.
    Excellent book list.

    Hope you are having a great New Year!
    Sign-ups for the First Annual #AtoZChallenge Book Reviews, Tour, and Blog Hop are open. Check the A to Z blog for details.

    – J, Team Captain of the Blogging from A to Z Challenge
    ~Celebrating our TENTH anniversary in April 2019~

    Reply
  4. Hilary says

    January 14, 2019 at 11:58 am

    Hi Claire – have a great year ahead … I’m getting back into things now. I’d love to read the Tolkien letters … I’ve made a note for later in the year to see if it’s around …

    Have a very good year teaching and more importantly with the family – cheers Hilary

    Reply
  5. Mentalidad Televisiva says

    January 22, 2019 at 5:30 am

    Lovely festive post! I must find Letters from Father Christmas.
    I have been on a quest for the complete wonderful family picture for years.
    As a result I sent out a Paperless Post with a nice one of Gino and me. Oh well.

    Reply

Join the Discussion! Cancel reply

Please submit your comment with a real name.

Thanks for your feedback!

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Welcome

Hello. I’m Claire Annette - reader, writer, teacher, and field trip planner extraordinaire. Here at A Field Trip Life you will find ideas for adventures large and small and the kids’ books that inspire them. Sign your permission slip. Let's go!

Connect With Me!

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Join the Fun, Subscribe to a Field Trip Life Monthly!

Subscribe

* indicates required

Review Policy

Click Here for Review Policy

Search

Categories

MCBookDay-white-21-300x234



claireannettenolandbooks

Author | teacher | Field Trip Planner
books that take you places
Raven’s Gift
Nancy Bess Had a Dress
Evie’s Field Day
Out and About w George series

Instagram post 18050455565169935 Instagram post 18050455565169935
Today’s the day! I’m the featured author on to Today’s the day! I’m the featured author on today’s Summer of Stories! Take a look and let me know what you think. The link is in my bio.

And then check out all the other great stories!

#summerofstories #floursackdresses #floursack #makedo #picturebookreadaloud 

@angelac.hawkins @gnomeroadpublishing @eringreneaux
I'm excited to share that the Crystal Kite Award v I'm excited to share that the Crystal Kite Award voting continues until July 18th for members of SCBWI. Our book, Nancy Bess Had a Dress, is in the Southwest Division (where illustrator @angelac.hawkins lives)

Members, you can vote for books in all of the regions.
Cast your vote at this link: 

https://www.scbwi.org/crystal-kite/CK8

I will be sharing Nancy Bess July 11th online for the Summer of Stories https://summerofstories.substack.com/

and I'll be doing story time and craft at the Three River Public Library on July 11th at 10:30

@gnomeroadpublishing @pbspree @eringreneaux @tularecountylib 
@scbwicencal #crystalkiteaward
Instagram post 18090291214629192 Instagram post 18090291214629192
We are enjoying a lovely summer’s day with CARL’S SLEEPY AFTERNOON thanks to our friends @laughingelephantbooks who sent us a copy signed by Alexandra Day and Carl!
Happy 40th Anniversary, Carl! You are such a good dog 🐾❤️
Carl has an opportunity to have a quiet and sleepy afternoon but does he rest? Not our Carl!
We’re on our 3rd generation loving this noble good dog and look forward to reading about his adventures for many more years!

#gooddogcarl #picturebookdogs #summerreading @mrernierecommends @christinabeeghly @laurennolandhajik @roxannenoland @gn705
Summer is the best time to beat the heat by taking Summer is the best time to beat the heat by taking your young ones to a museum. And I suggest, before you go, you share the delightful picture book, MousterWorks, written and illustrated by @angelac.hawkins
Young mice, Cosette and Pépin, join Grand-mère on a splendid adventure through a mouse hole into a museum. They gaze at brilliant interpretations of well-known painting by famous artists such as Claude Monet, Mary Cassatt, and Edward Banister. Cosette excitedly engages with the art while her brother, Pépin, searches for cheese in the art and eventually realizes that he can be an artist and paint his favorite things.

The final photo is 2.5 year old Alice at the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento. She was captivated by "Home Sweet Home" (after Seurat, Manet, and Pippin) painted by Wangari Mathenge

Art is for all ages.

To read my full review, visit my blog https://afieldtriplife.com/mousterworks-lets-go-to-a-museum/

@gnomeroadpublishing #mousterworks #artmuseumswithkids
@laurennolandhajik
Looking forward to simple unscheduled days! #july Looking forward to simple unscheduled days!
#july #afieldtriplife #summer
Look what we found featured at the library! #nancy Look what we found featured at the library! #nancybesshadadress 
Thank you @tularecountylib 
#summerreading #picturebooks #librarylove 
@angelac.hawkins @gnomeroadpublishing
Happy Summer! At the top of our summer "to do" lis Happy Summer! At the top of our summer "to do" list is visiting libraries where I love to see staff recommendations. SUMMER: A Solstice Story written by @kelseyegross and illustrated by @renataliwska is such a lovely picture book.
Owl, Squirrel, Raccoon, Bear, Sparrow, Rabbit, Woodpecker, and Deer gather to celebrate the arrival of summer with its gifts of light and new life. The friends share sprouts, fresh water, flowers, and fruit each accompanied by special wishes for the little ones to shine, glow, shimmer, gleam, and blaze bright with solstice light. They spend the day with festivities as they dance, splash, hop, and savor a forest feast.
I shared this with a group of children the night before the Solstice so that they understood how special this date is. Then, we read it again as the sun set on the longest day of the year after partaking of many of the same activities done by the woodland animals. They really enjoyed the center pages that fold out.
This is a soft, gentle, and breathtakingly beautiful picture book that should be enjoyed all summer long. @pbspree #summersolstice #summerasolsticestory
We have been Good Dog Carl fans for almost 4 decad We have been Good Dog Carl fans for almost 4 decades so we are excited to celebrate 40 years of our favorite picture book series! I love the book mom and Carl’s adventures are the best!
So let’s raise a toast to Carl, the very good dog, and to  @laughingelephantbooks Here’s to many more wonderful years of ❤️ filled stories.
#wewon #gooddogcarl #afieldtriplife #picturebookdogs @laurennolandhajik @christinabeeghly @roxannenoland
Military families are made up of heroes, those who Military families are made up of heroes, those who leave home to serve and those who stay behind. It isn’t easy to find books featuring military families, so I was excited to discover when AS MUCH as the STARS: A Story of Love Across the. Miles – A Child’s Goodbye/ AS MUCH AS THE STARS: A Story of love across The Miles: A Mother’s Farewell. I love flip books because they are clever and provide a fun way to read two stories told from different perspectives. AS MUCH AS THE STARS does an exceptional job of showing the love and emotions surrounding a deployment and then a joyous return. In this authentic, well-written story, one half follows a young girl and her relationship with her military father. The other half features the viewpoint of that girl, now grown, whose son leaves home to serve. warm and colorful illustrations add to the text showing the love that is shared even when they are separated by great distances.
This is a wonderful book for all families and will help everyone understand the sacrifices that our brave service members make. I just wish this book had been available when I was teaching children in military families.
Written by Forrest Zenone, Skyler Zenone, and Tricia Stone-Shumaker
Illustrations by Penny Weber
@poppysadventures1 @pennyweberart @laurennolandhajik #militaryfamilies #asmuchasthestars
#mrernierecommends
FYI… sweet peas are blooming on Old Creek Road a FYI… sweet peas are blooming on Old Creek Road around Whale Rock Reservoir
The story of how they got there reminds me of Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney “You must do something to make the world more beautiful.” 
Read how these delicate blossoms came to grace the highways in San Luis Obispo County: https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/johnny-appleseed-sweet-peas-planted-120000196.html

Lupine, poppies, and wild mustard are also blooming.

#sweetpeas #jackcreekfarms #roadtrip #afieldtriplife #missrumphius
Follow on Instagram

Copyright © 2025 | A Field Trip Life | Claire Annette Noland | All Rights Reserved