We love the holiday season, but all the extra “stuff” — gifts, decorations, and items piling up on every surface — can feel overwhelming. This year we’re trying a simpler approach so the season stays joyful instead of stressful. A question we often hear is, “Help me pinpoint my style — I’m all over the place!” We’ll walk through how we clarify our style when multiple decorating directions pull us in different ways. That happens more often than you might expect. Plus, Sherry revisits a hotly debated opinion she shared last week, and John announces a personal campaign to reduce screen time.

You can download this episode from Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, and TuneIn Radio — or listen to it below. Use this page to find links, notes, and photos we mentioned. Note: If you’re reading in a feed reader, you may need to click through to the post to see the player.

What’s New

• We’ll share a bigger photo tour of our holiday decorating later this week. Above is a preview that shows the simpler direction we took this year: Sherry’s faux magnolia garland she found earlier in the year, stockings she picked up at Target last year, and a string of elephants from World Market that she cut into smaller tassels for the stockings. We like how a few thoughtful pieces can create a cohesive look without overdoing it.
• To curb phone time, I’ve been using the Moment app to track and reduce screen usage. Below you can see screenshots of my recent tracking — the gray timeline dots on the far right indicate brief pickups. The app helped me notice small habits and make meaningful changes.
• If you prefer different formats, the “Bored & Brilliant” course I followed is available as a book and also as a podcast series, so you can choose what fits your learning style best.

Updates

• Our original discussion about “lamping,” including its technical definition, was in Episode #71. That episode also referenced some colloquial definitions and slang sources that listeners found entertaining.
• If you want to hear more about how we paid off our mortgage, refer back to Episode #64 where we walk through that process and what we learned.
• Last week’s Episode #74 is where Sherry made a passionate case for preserving older houses. She also tried to demystify foundation issues for anyone navigating the real estate market, and clearly the topic sparked some conversation.

We’re Digging

• The photo above shows our new Amazon Echo. I bought it using birthday gift cards and a Black Friday deal, and I also grabbed an inexpensive smart plug as an add-on. We used that plug on our Christmas tree, which let us control the lights remotely — it’s simple but fun to automate one small thing in the house.
• We picked the Echo instead of Google Home largely because we expected to use it for music a lot. The Echo’s speaker and the range of available “skills” were factors in our decision, and it has delivered on music playback and convenience.
• If you want to buy some nostalgic books for kids, classic series sets like Goosebumps, Boxcar Children, and The Babysitter’s Club can be affordable and fun options. They’re a great pick for introducing kids to series-style reading.

If you’re trying to find a past recommendation we mentioned on the podcast, we maintain a master list of everything we’ve been digging from past episodes so you can easily locate any item or idea.

Finally, a thank you to The Annie Selke Companies for sponsoring this episode. Use code YHL15 to get 15% off orders at AnnieSelke.com/YHL on bedding, rugs, and more.

Thanks for listening and following along — we appreciate you being here as we try to keep the holidays simple and meaningful.

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