It’s 2021!  May I be the first to wish you a Happy New Year!  And a healthy one!  And a normal one! 

The first Friday of the month can sneak up on you if it falls on the first day of the month.  It can really sneak up on you if it also falls on the first day of the year!

Let’s get to the good stuff so you can get on with your New Year’s Day celebrations or, as I prefer to call it, National Jammie Day.  Just leave those warm snugglies on and do whatever you feel like today.  After all, you have 364 more days to be busy and stressed and overloaded.

Just don’t neglect one thing – enter to win January’s First Friday Freebie!

This 6 ½” X 3” hanging wooden sign is a rustic reminder of what really matters during the months ahead.  After all we’ve seen happen in 2020 (much of which we never thought possible), we truly need to learn to simplify, to be grateful for what we do have and, most of all, to allow ourselves to dream and hope for better days ahead.  Along with the sign, you’ll receive a package of three scented sachets for your home from Lifescapes.  The Sea Salt & Driftwood scent will make your home as fresh as the new year.  I know this is the time when many of us promise ourselves we’ll de-clutter and get reorganized and whether it is drawers, closets or office space, a little scent gives an added boost to our moods and our sense of accomplishment.

To enter to win the sign and sachets, all you need to do is “Leave a Comment” on this post, saying, “Happy New Year, Midwest Storyteller!”  You’ll need to do that before midnight TONIGHT, January 1^st, 2021!

NOTE:  There seems to be a problem here on the blog with people trying to subscribe and not receiving their confirmation email.  If this has happened to you, please email me at barb@midweststoryteller.com and let me know so that I can report all these instances and have the issue solved.

First Friday Freebies are for email SUBSCRIBERS ONLY, so hop on over to the right sidebar or use the menu to navigate to the “Contact” page and subscribe to Midwest Storyteller if you haven’t done so.

Your friends will enjoy the stories, recipes, laughter and, of course, the FREEBIES here on the blog, too, so share with all your friends and family through Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest.

Subscribers win every single month!  On the “Freebies” page, you’ll be able to see what they’ve been winning.

Once again, a winner will be chosen at random from those subscribers who enter before midnight tonight by leaving a comment which says, “Happy New Year, Midwest Storyteller!”

See the complete freebie rules here.  

Those four steps will take you no time at all!

I know you stayed up too late last night, but don’t let your grogginess keep you from entering right now.  Subscribe now if you haven’t already, and confirm in your email before you forget!  (See note above concerning subscription problems.)

Is the earth spinning faster than it used to?  We’re going to turn around and find out it’s Valentine’s Day and wonder how that happened. 

Comments or questions?  I’d love to hear how you’re going to make even the smallest shifts in your life in 2021 to Live Simply.  Be Grateful.  Dream Big.