Christmastime can be difficult for those who have lost a loved one during the year. There is a loneliness about this time that even holiday music, lights and cookies can’t totally overcome.
That is just one of the reasons I love Christmas romances. There is always a happy ending. Cheer and love win-out as the story closes and hope again reigns supreme.
It’s OK to feel a bit melancholy over the holidays. It’s OK to feel like there’s never enough time to truly enjoy them. It’s OK to feel like you could use a good cry. If you or someone you care about is feeling a bit blue I hope that after the cry, knowing that you are loved and appreciated will gently wash over you. Then, when it’s time to celebrate, I hope you do so with a full heart.
When I feel a bit like the world is spinning too fast and nothing is getting done the way I think it should be, that’s when I find a good dose of undercover reading is in order. I always feel better after and somehow everything that needs doing still gets done.
This year, CHRISTMAS ON MAIN STREET, is available again with the addition of Joan Reeves’ story, Nobody’s Cinderella. These are beautiful stories that can be read in small bits when happily-ever-after is needed. I hope you enjoy the set as much as I do and that you share it with those who could use a bit of cheer.
Thank you for visiting and being a part of our Authors of Main Street family. We all wish you, Love, Peace, Health, Prosperity and a bit of romance on the page in the New Year. If everyone read romance, the world would be a happier place.
For those of you looking for a quick and wonderful treat to bring on your holiday outings, here’s my recipe for Macski’s Scottish Shortbread. Enjoy!
3 sticks of room temp butter
1/2 cup sugar
4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp vanilla
In a mixer, combine the butter, sugar and vanilla until creamy. Slowly add the flour until fully blended. If necessary, add an extra 2T of butter to make the dough workable.
Roll out the dough to 1/4″ thickness between two sheets of waxed paper. Cut out cookies in your favorite holiday shapes.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until light brown.
Enjoy!
Peace and Goodwill to you,
Leigh
Authors of Main Street 
Oh, I LOVE shortbread! That’s all I need to brighten my spririts.
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It’s really a great recipe, Susan. I’m sure you’ll love them! Have a very Merry Christmas.
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Great post Leigh, it’s true that the holidays, for some, are not as festive and joyful as for others. Losing someone does create a void at the table, on the christmas list, etc. It’s a good reason why we should all try and call those we love and just send a little cheer their way, presents aren’t the asnwer, just a little hope and an ‘I love you’. I think that’s enough sometimes, along with yummy cookies and good reads, of course! 🙂
Wishing you and your family a warm holiday with good memories of those gone, memories that warm your heart and lift your spirit, rather than make you sad!
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Thanks, Kelly! I hope you have a very Merry Christmas as well. Good memories do certainly lift my spirits, fill my heart and make me smile.
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Wonderful post, Leigh. The holidays can truly be bittersweet – times of great joy with family and friends, and times of great sadness over recent losses. I hope that your joys outnumber your sorrows this holiday season. Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to you and your family.
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Thanks, Romance lover. The joys certainly outweigh the sadness here and we’re letting everyone we love know they are in our hearts. Merry Christmas to you!
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Yes Christmastime can be sad when we miss a loved one. Both my parents passed a month and two months before Christmas. That year I kept thinking they should be here, sitting at the table with us. But the children’s laughter and babbling can make you forget your sorrow. Good post, Leigh. Merry Christmas.
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Thanks, Mona. I think have children around always makes holidays better, especially at Thanksgiving and Christmas.
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Thanks for the shortbread recipe. I was thinking of making some individual fruit pizzas for the kids (and me) on Christmas Eve, this would be perfect! Shortbread cookies and a tall cold glass of milk, is my idea of living.
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Agreed, Pepper 🙂 Have a wonderful Christmas!
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Sometimes just writing about it helps, doesn’t it? “Feeling” your emotions is honest and far healthier than pretending you don’t. Although it’s difficult to face the melancholy, it’s a necessary part of the process. Thanks for the recipe.
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I forgot to type: Have a very Merry Christmas to you and your family, Joan!
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You nailed that one, Joan. Writing does help. It always helps, and at the end I’ve got product, so that’s great too. I am smiling more as each day brings us closer to Christmas and have resolved to think about all the wonderful memories from my past and creating new ones with my children.
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Oh yummy, shortbread! Thanks for the recipe.
Merry Christmas to your family. Fill your memory bank with as much as you can, because your children will be grown and on their own before you know it.
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Thanks, E. Merry Christmas to you and your family!
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