Ready or Not! Here they come… 🎃🦃🎄🎅🏼

[Lovewell]

Yes, the Holidays in many industries can be JAM PACKED. Even if your industry slows down personal life generally picks up!

This isn’t always a bad thing. The holidays have a way of stressing people out but also

bringing people together. We’ve been talking a lot on the community about more face to face  interactions. The holidays are the best time to implement that practice! 

WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS HOLIDAY SEASON?
The goal is always to remain positive. We can harp about all the stress that the holidays bring but what brings you joy? 

Anything fun planned

for staff? Yourself? Favorite traditions? 

We love this time of year! The shop is dressed up and everyone wants something yummy to drink.

Can’t wait to hear from you! 

English traditions?! @doc_choc

Oh and we of course have to hear from @CareyJo ✨ 

@TheRealChipA have to know- do we like peppermint ice cream? 

[CareyJo]

🤢

[CareyJo]

Good advice!  We've decided not to do coffee at all, except for old fashioned drip, for the elderly who like it for breakfast.  So, one less thing to worry about.  We're going to focus on the brewed sodas and scoop ice cream.

[TheRealChipA]

@Lovewell @Yup. That’s been a float option for is for years now. As have Frappes — shakes made with cold brew. They are decent sellers

[Lovewell]

YUM! That’s awesome 🙂 

[TheRealChipA]

@Lovewell I’m a cold brew convert. I don’t think I’ve ever had a smoother, lower acidic experience with coffee in my life. It makes what I claim is the perfect affogato. Much better than espresso based affogatos. . 

[Lovewell]

We call our cold brew rocket fuel 😂 super smooth but insane caffeine. 

Our cold brew peeps LOVE IT. 

[Lovewell]

Soft serve is delightful anytime of year! 
Add some Christmas sprinkles? Bam. It’s perfect. 

Love going to the Whippy trucks in Ireland. Always have to add sprinkles or raspberry sauce. I feel like you could just change up some toppings! 

When our parents owned an ice cream shop they said they sold more on cold days than hot! 

[CareyJo]

You know, statistics show that people want ice cream more as it gets colder or if it's raining... our Dairy Queen would close for almost three months every winter for decades and everyone hated it.  We wanted ice cream all year long!!

[CareyJo]

Okay... first @Lovewell thanks for the tag!  Oh, boy... where to BEGIN!!!  We used to have a lot of traditions but since we're empty nesters and our kids are mostly gone away and in other places for the holidays, we rarely get to celebrate them anymore.  Unfortunately, our kids don't come home for Christmas and they all have yours-mine-ours situations.  So we don't get to see our kids/grands on Christmas itself very often and certainly not all at the same time.

Second, since we're a service based company, we don't celebrate this with our clients other than to send Christmas cards to some of our top clients each year.  I will often take a plate of goodies or a special gift to our biggest clients as a thank you, but that's about it.  December 26th is actually inventory prep day for us.  We're usually closed early on the 23rd, closed 24th and 25th of course and most of the time we don't need to be open on the 26th.  So we do prep and then close again on the 31st and 1st and do actual inventory.  It is very cold here in Montana during that time and it takes quite a while to go through the truck and the warehouse and trailer to get it all done.  None of which can be heated of course.  The warehouse could potentially be heated but he's never gotten around to it.  So I wear about 6 layers of clothes and sit in the sun as much as possible.

[Lovewell]

Love bringing treats to people at the holidays!! 

One year I made 6 dozen cinnamon rolls and baked them in half dozen containers for some of my regulars. Did them more as a take a bake situation so they could pop them in their oven on Christmas (one of my fav traditions) and have the house smell delish! 

[CareyJo]

That's fantastic!!  I can smell them!!!

[CareyJo]

Oh... I forgot to mention... what I look forward to most is the decorating!  I shop all year long so I can be prepared - with about 40 people in our family, I have to... but once I get my decorating done, there is nothing finer than sitting in my living room, all cozy just looking at the trees and being surrounded by the lights 🎄 

[Lovewell]

This is the dream ✨🎄 

OH! Colored lights or white lights? 

[CareyJo]

Depends on use.  I use both.

[DinaLRosenberg]

OMG I'm such a SCROOGE at home. Honestly working retail there's nothing left for me to decorate at home and my kids aren't into it.. so... I just put up a tree without ornaments LOLOL

[Lovewell]

As long as the twinkle lights are there I think it still has some christmas magic ✨

[CareyJo]

I have had bare trees with lights.  Don't like it.  Nope.  No.  Nadda.  Can't do.  Uh-huh.  LOL

[DinaLRosenberg]

white tree, white lights. one year I put about a 100 Turkish eveil eyes on our tree

[CareyJo]

OMG!!!  That HURTS me so much!!!  LOL... a bare tree... uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhh!  The agony!!!  Can you just see Charlie Brown with his head tipped back saying that?  That's where I'm at with that... too bad I don't live close.  I'd take care of that for you.  I'm still considering offering decorating services for a few select people but with this new venture, I'm not sure I'll have the time... we shall see.  Plus, it takes me so long to do my own, I would have to do mine first so I don't get burned out after doing theirs...

[Lovewell]

I’ve thought about this too! But after decorating both shops and our house I’m like… yeah no 😂

[VanKalkerFarms]

We used to have real trees as kids, and only 2 times as married, then switched to artificial.  Now, with the Bakeries being so holiday busy, winter used to be our downtime on the farm; we also just have a bare tree if we even get it up.  With 3 cats, they don't get along with the tree, so presents don't even go out until that morning, or the cats would get them too.