The half-eaten apple pie rests next to the containers full of sweet potatoes and green bean casserole on the top shelf in my fridge. I’ve eaten pie for breakfast and turkey sandwiches for dinner. We’ve taken to watching all the Pixar films in order for family entertainment, and the dusty totes marked “Christmas decor” are stacked in my living room, awaiting a moment of good cheer in which they’ll be opened and used.

Today is the last day of November.

Tomorrow the December Photo Project begins.

I began the DPP nine years ago as a challenge to myself: take one photo daily for the first 25 days of December and post it to my blog. I invited friends to join me if they wanted to do it, and voila, the DPP began. It’s simple. It’s fun. It’s challenging. More challenging than you’d think actually. Inevitably one gets excited at the outset of the month, but interest wanes as the days go by. I’m a girl who welcomes a challenge though, and so you’ll always see me pressing hard to get through the 25 days of the project.

A lot has changed in nine years. Now there are 365 day challenges and I’ve witnessed a few friends take and post a photo every day of the year. My hat is off to them! Nine years ago blogging got pretty popular and now it’s not the big thing any longer (though a few of us are too stubborn to give up, right?). We’ve got Instagram and Facebook and, for some, that’s more than enough presence online. And then we have cameras. Let’s talk cameras! The smart phone has changed so much regarding the friendliness and accessibility of photography. Most everyone has a camera on their phone (what is this, the FUTURE?!!) and can easily preserve an image to enjoy later. There are, of course, pluses and minuses to all this technology, but in terms of the DPP, let’s just say that anyone can play along. And I’m a fan of that. The December Photo Project has always been about people capturing the month of December in a way that appeals to them.

So whether you’re shooting with an iPhone or a Nikon, join us.
Whether you’re posting on Instagram or your own blog, join us.
Commit to 25 days of memory-making this December, and remember to have fun.

Let the games begin!

**Final note: My husband Jeremy first made our DPP badges and then I began asking friends qualified in design to create something for us. This year the fantastic and creative team at Eleanor Creative made our badges and banners and they knocked it out of the park, didn’t they? Thanks so much, Eleanor Creative! You did an amazing job.