Happy Christmas in July!
Welcome Christmas friends to my first ever Christmas in July Linky Party! I'm so thrilled you are here to join me at my very first Christmas in July Linky Party!
Let's keep the spirit of Christmas alive this month by sharing our favorite Holiday blog posts from Christmases past. Fill the house with festive scents, grab a cup of your favourite brew, listen to some of my favorite Christmas tunes and help me Celebrate Christmas in JULY!
Every July, on the Sunday that is closest to the 25th, I host a Christmas in July party for my family. Some people thought it was a bit weird at first but these days it seems that many people who live in the Southern Hemisphere celebrate Christmas in July.
Christmas in July is a great chance to get friends and family together for a fabulous winter feast but it is also growing in popularity all around the world.
The earliest reference for the phrase 'Christmas in July' was in July 1933 at a girl's summer camp in North Carolina USA. The term later gained momentum with the release of the Hollywood movie comedy 'Christmas in July' in 1940.
Then in 1942, the Calvary Baptist Church in the USA celebrated 'Christmas in July' featuring a sermon 'Christmas Presents in July' and a Christmas tree. By the end of the sermon, the tree was covered with donations and gifts from the congregation. The donations and gifts were then distributed to missions worldwide. By 1946 this annual service began to be broadcast over local radio.
Today many Churches across the world celebrate Christmas in July with services, fund raising and activities.
The Lakewood United Methodist Church hosted a Christmas in July public festival. They gave away snowcones, treated everyone to a free concert, gathered donations for the Gardner Food Pantry and helped Central Arkansas Rescue Effort (CARE).
"Christmas in July" festivities are said to have started here in Australia in July, 1980 when a group of Irish tourists asked the proprietor of a hotel in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales to hold a party called "Yulefest".
Guests getting into the Christmas spirit at the Fairmont Resort in Katoomba
Scandinavian languages translate the word "Christmas" as Jul (literally, Yule), which happens to be the abbreviation for July in English!
My Christmas in July party usually includes a few Christmas decorations (I don't put up my tree!), Christmas candles, bonbons, Christmas hats and small toys for the kids.
I have had no problem finding yummy recipes to try, as one of my favourite Australian recipe sites has got a whole section devoted to Christmas in July! Have a look at some of these festive recipes!
Despite the fact that Christmas in July has become very commercialized in many places, I think that it is an occasion to remember the spirit of Christmas, which, according to Washington Irving, is the season for kindling the fire of hospitality in the hall, the genial flame of charity in the heart. It is also a fun way for people in the northern Hemisphere to satisfy a craving for cooler weather and it is a fun way for us in the South to experience what a Northern Hemisphere Christmas would be like.
I love celebrating Christmas in July!
I hope you can share the Christmas Spirit with me today and link up any of your old (or new!) posts that relate to Christmas; you can share recipes, projects, DIY, crafts, tutorials, your home tours, decorating ideas, anything that will help us share the Christmas Spirit!
Feel free to grab the code for the Christmas in July Party button and add that to your post so that your readers might be able to find other bloggers who would like to join the fun.
Thanks for linking up!
I will also be sharing all of your wonderful posts on my Christmas board on Pinterest! This board is full of fun and festive ideas and is followed by more than 5600 pinners!
Thanks so much for stopping by today. Best Christmas wishes and Happy Christmas in July!
Natasha
Please join me each weekend for the Say G'day Saturday Linky Party!
Thanks so much for the party, Natasha!! You know how I love Christmas!!!
ReplyDeleteHugs,
Deb
I am so thrilled you here lovely Debbie. It wouldn't be a Christmas party without you!
DeleteHave a wonderful day and Happy Christmas in July. xo
Thanks so much for this party! Great idea!!!! Jane
ReplyDeleteLove Christmas in July, been listening to holiday music all month.
ReplyDeleteThe spiced cider looks divine.
Thank you for hosting, Natasha.
So fun! I am definitely in the "Christmas spirit" this July! Thanks for hosting Natasha!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Natasha! I've been looking forward to this since you announced it! :) So fun! Shared!
ReplyDeleteHi Natasha, thanks for this fun Christmas party! Have a wonderful weekend.
ReplyDeleteThis is so much fun Natasha, and I love your tradition of a Christmas party every July with traditional food and decorations~I have heard from several that they do office parties in July rather than Dec when it's so busy! I can't wait to look around and get in the spirit!
ReplyDeleteJenna
Christmas is my favorite time of year. I even just bought a christmas scented candle yesterday! Thanks for hosting this party!
ReplyDeleteSome great posts linked up to your party, Natasha. This is such fun!
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas Natasha!!! What a fun party and thank you for hosting. I'm spending my day listening to Christmas and making a ham for our Christmas in July!!!
ReplyDeleteNatasha, I LOVE Christmas! I love nutcrackers too! I have around, well, I quit counting...you see, I have five kids so I would buy 5 nutcrackers at a time. (On sale of course!) But then I realized I had to buy 6 at a time, so when each child leaves home to start their own, I'd have some left for me! :)
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the cold for me! It's just hot here! :)
Merry Christmas!
Thanks for a wonderful party Natasha! It's really hot very humid on the Texas Coast in July and the idea of celebrating Christmas now is just so appealing.
ReplyDeleteBig Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley
This is such a fun post and party, Natasha. It was 116 degrees here yesterday, so cold weather sounds so good now! :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea Natasha. Its hot in Coastal BC Canada and Christmas in July is just right.
ReplyDeleteJoy
I love that you thought of this Natasha! It is worth it for the food alone! It should be all about getting together and having a great meal! Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteSherry
What a fun party. I love the holiday season too and it's nice to be able to bring it back in the middle of the year :-)
ReplyDeleteI have been waiting on pins and needles for today! Thank you for a lovely party!
ReplyDeleteGood Morning Natasha, Do you know, I had no idea that celebrating Christmas in July was linked to the Church, I thought it was an idea that you had created for your blog. This is what I love about fellow bloggers like yourself, there is always something new to learn. I have added my Christmas Cake from last year as for the first time, in many years, my family were all in the same country and we were able to celebrate Christmas together. We had a wonderful time and being a part of your party has reminded me of all the happiness we shared.
ReplyDeleteBest Wishes to you.
Daphne
Interesting trivia on how `Christmas in July` began.
ReplyDeleteI had no idea it was so long ago.
Thank you for hosting the party.
So glad to find your blog! Please visit me at www.christmastreelane.blogspot.com I am definitely going to follow you on Pinterest and here as well!
ReplyDeleteChristmas in July!!! SO perfect!
ReplyDeleteThanks for linking up at the Bewitchin Projects party this week! I can't wait to see what you link up again next week over at OurMiniFamily.com!
Cheers,
~Cathy Mini~
OurMiniFamily.com
C'est la première fois que je viens sur votre blog que je trouve charmant et très intéressant! Joyeux Noel de juillet un peu en retard! ♥
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