This week the holidays finally started to feel real because Julia and I went to

This week the holidays finally started to feel real because Julia and I went to our local Christmas tree farm to bring home a tree. Julia builds her own DIY menorah every year, so this month our house is filled with so much light and decoration. I’m always so inspired by the warmth this season brings, and I’ve been so happy to focus less on shopping and decorating (although I do love tree lights) and more on giving back.
This year we did our local toy drive and are volunteering at food and family shelters in our area, but we’re also following a suggestion left by writer (and D*S contributor) Ashley C. Ford that I wanted to share here. Ashley suggested people call up their local school system to find out about overdue lunch accounts for students in need. So many of these children aren’t able to pay off their bills and won’t be able to join their classmates for meals — or get the food they need (and may not be able to get at home). All you need to do is get the totals and chip in as much as you can afford, or coordinate with others (or local businesses) to help pay off the totals. It’s a nice way to get involved with your local schools and a great way to make sure that the next generation of makers, artists, dreamers and doers has the fuel they need to grow and learn. Speaking of inspiration, I wanted to launch a short #Hashtag challenge for this month: #...