I don’t want to start this post with a list of all the things that are hard right now. It seems that’s all we are talking about. With good reason, of course. Instead, today I’d like to talk about what we have to look forward to and how we ought to take this opportunity to reframe the holidays. The holidays are upon us and we are still here. That’s something about which we can all rejoice! (That and the election is over. Whew!). We are living in a stressful time and I give everyone here the permission to reassess what you think you must do and instead do whatever feels good and is easy this holiday season. Holiday traditions, as well as holiday hacks, should be on everyone’s minds right now.A friend of mine sent me a meme of the Elf on a Shelf wearing a mask and holding hand sanitizer while sitting in a jar. He has to quarantine for two weeks before he can hang out at your house. Boom! You’ve just given yourself two weeks of elf-less holiday to-dos. Where else can you save time? Order your sides from restaurants like Stomping Ground or heck, order the whole meal from your favorite restaurant. It’s okay. It doesn’t have to be made by you to be special. Can’t be with your loved ones this year but want to express heartfelt season’s greetings, then get your custom printed holiday cards from Penny Post. In one Zoom call, you can have them ordered then shipped to your house. We can even print the return address on the envelope, so you don’t have to! 

 Photo by Gray Malin

Red Barn Mercantile and Penny Post are super excited to bring you the biggest time saver of all: Next Day Delivery! Starting today, you can save time for those things that you want to do and let us handle the things you feel you have to do. Place an order online or call one in by 5pm and we will have the package delivered the next day. Teacher gifts sent to the school, done. Hostess gifts for the party you’ll miss, check. Curated gifts for your team to thank them for working so hard, can do. Forgot one last gift for junior and you need it ASAP, absolutely. We are here to make your holidays easier whether that’s with in-store shopping, shipping, curbside pick-up, or delivery!  Bandwidth is in short supply this year, so it is our sincere wish that we all take time to reflect on the blessings we have, forgive ourselves for those things we just can’t make happen this year, and enjoy the magic of the holidays, whatever they may look like.PS: Since this is our first time doing this, we are limiting our delivery areas to Alexandria (City and Fairfax County) and South Arlington. If there is demand for D.C. and we can handle it, then we will gladly add that on. Stay tuned!