Author Jeanette Lewis

It’s always amazing and humbling when I see that people all over the world are reading my books and over the years, I’ve found that the sweet romance community of readers and authors is amazingly supportive, kind, and fun. It’s like we’re our own little village, only very spread out.

So this year, I want to introduce you to each other. This project is called “Christmas” but really it can be any holiday celebration. I want to see what brings the magic of December to you.

I’ll do a post later about Christmas in my own house, but first, a word about my mother. She is the most amazing woman I know and every year she put immense effort into making Christmas special for me and my five siblings. Six kids! Without the internet! I don’t know how she did it.

I don’t remember a single disappointed Christmas morning. I remember a lot of sleepless Christmas nights because we were too hyper and excited, but even when I was old enough to know a few secrets, her magic never failed me. I hope someday my own children can say that about me.

Part of Christmas lives on at my parents’ house year-round thanks to my mother’s Dickens village. I remember when she started collecting it and only had three houses. Now she has hundreds and she keeps them in a glass case to enjoy all the time. All these pictures are from her collection. I asked her to send me some photos of her favorites.

I already had daughters of my own when Mom got the case for the village. My younger daughter used to perch on a stool in front of it and make up stories. She’d talk just softly enough that you couldn’t understand, and she’d stop if you got too close. Even now, I wonder what magical tales she told herself as she sat there for hours at a time.

Then the grandsons came along and I think Mom has more than one plastic army man embedded somewhere in the village. It was pretty high currency for a while. My autistic son is not eager to express affection, but he was willing to trade a bear hug with Grandma for a chance to put a sniper on the roof of the castle!

I have a village of my own, but it is nowhere near the scale of my mother’s. No matter the time of year, going into her house and seeing the village all lit up immediately puts me in the Christmas spirit.

I love you, Mom!

Please join us by sharing the holiday traditions at your house. Email photos and/or stories to me at AuthorJeanetteLewis@gmail.com and I’ll post them here. Please include your country, state, or province so we can see how far around the world our village reaches. For privacy reasons, I will only include your first name and last initial in each post, or if you’d rather be totally anonymous, please let me know.

Looking forward to seeing your photos!

Love,
Jeanette