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Season's Greetings from Smudge Ink! We’re celebrating the holidays by sharing our staff’s special festive traditions. We’re also revealing a few of our favorite memories, food, drinks and songs. We wish you a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year! [This picture taken last Thursday where we spent most of the morning decorating the auditorium at the Boys + Girls Club of Charlestown for their annual holiday party.]

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This July, we took a break from the always-bustling Smudge Ink studio and went for a jaunt up to Ipswich for our annual summer outing. We decided to have a fun and relaxing day soaking up some history and picnicking on the beach.

Inspired by our slight preoccupation with Downton Abbey, we spent the morning on a tour of the impressive Crane Estate where we got to see some stately rooms and frolic on the lush green lawn. A few of us felt like we were stepping on to a beautiful movie set! After the tour, we headed straight to Crane Beach. Deb and Kate served a delicious and healthy spread of bean salad, tortilla chips, spinach, peaches and cookies. Even though the sun wasn’t very cooperative (and the water was freezing), we had a great time hanging out on our beach blankets and bonding. All in all, it was a pretty perfect summer day. Thanks Kate and Deb!

Side note: In this post, Alyssa failed to mention she was the only one who was brave enough to go in for a dip while the rest of us wimps stayed warm on shore! 

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Every summer we take a break for a day and venture out of the studio for our annual summer outing. The intention is to have some fun, get to know each other outside of work and enjoy some time outside. Previous outings have involved berry picking, mini golf and a visit to the harbor islands (in an unexpected thunderstorm, naturally). Deb suggested something different this year, and so this past July we drove up to Moraine Farm in Beverly and took a Project Adventure course. We spent a half day learning quirky and interesting facts about each other, and we took on some crazy fun physical challenges like walking across wires together (1 ft off the ground) and logs too (3 stories high). It was a blast! The combination of outdoor fun with challenges and team bonding mixed in seemed to work well for our group. Plus, we learned something about each other and ourselves along the way. Best summer outing yet. Thanks, Deb!

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For many of us, the holidays bring back memories of snowman sweaters courtesy of Aunt Doris or being dragged around the neighborhood for the annual carol-a-thon with your siblings. How funny it is that the very traditions you probably rolled your eyes at as a kid warm your heart now. What are the holidays without the traditions that come along with it? 

For the folks here at Smudge Ink, we’re looking forward to family scrabble games, making cookies and gingerbread houses with our kids, eating latkas, croissants and mom’s oatmeal bread…and most definitely staying in our pj’s all day. It is these rituals, along with time spent with family and friends, that make us forget about the stress of the holidays and allow us to focus on being together. However you choose to celebrate the season — enjoy it! — and know that we wish you a happy, safe and relaxing holiday. See you in 2013!

Most of the Smudge Ink team at our annual holiday party last night.

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