Every year, when I was a little, we would gather by the fireplace with bowls of popcorn and bright red cranberries. My mom would choose a holiday album to put on the turntable (it was always records at Christmas) and hand out spools and needles. We would thread each piece onto the string, our hands work methodically, fingers stained with cranberry juice, occasionally yelping at a misplaced needle. Laughter mixed with quiet moments, the smell of fresh pine in the air, a giant three wick candle glowing merrily on the hatch cover table in our living room. Last year, we decided to make it a tradition in our home too. So we gathered around our living room table, bowls of popcorn and craberries overflowing as we taught Lucy the fine art of popcorn and cranberry strings. It’s an enduring tradition- a nod to simpler times that fills us with joy. There is nothing quite like of creating something beautiful together and adorning the house with our nostalgic creations.