Up early...

and continue to write my Christmas cards.  Yes, it takes a lot of time, but oh how I love mail and Christmas cards.  Each one a treasure.  Yes, and I love to make them and I love to send them.  It's tradition.  The first Christmas card was believed to have been designed and printed in London in 1843. 

"John Callcott Horsley (born 1817 - died 1903), a British narrative painter and a Royal Academician, designed the very first Christmas and New Year's card at the request of his friend Sir Henry Cole (the first director of the Victoria and Albert Museum).  Cole suggested the idea of a specially designed form of greeting to send to friends at Christmas.  In 1843 an edition of 1,000 of these Christmas cards were printed and placed on sale in London.  They were printed in lithography of Jobbins of Warwick Court, Holborn, London, and hand-colored by a professional "colourer" names Mason.  The cards were published under Sir Henry Cole's nom de guerre, "Felix Summerly" - by his friend Joseph Cundall, of New Bond Street."
http://www.victoriana.com/