Happy (just past) Tuesday everyone, and Merry Christmas! You're going to a party! Or invited others to your party. ;) The more I began thinking about Christmas parties, the more I began wondering... Should I bring a white elephant gift? Food? Cookies? How to dress? Furthermore, what sort of activities to expect? Should I eat before the party? Accck! Before you know it, your in the car with a half wrapped hammer, a plate of stale apple slices, a green shirt, and a coat.
....Okay, deep breath! Christmas parties are meant to be fun, not overwhelming! First, we'll deal with going to someone else's party, then tackle the host part.
Christmas Party number 1!!!!
As the Bunnies pointed out, often more than one Christmas party happens over the holidays. I have created a quick check-list to go over before leaving the house. Ideally, check this list about 1 day prior to the party.
1. Who will be there? Is this family, estranged relatives, or a work party?
2. Will they be serving dinner, hors devours, snacks?
3. Politely ask the host (or invitee) if they would like you to bring anything. They may say no, but they will appreciate the gesture.
4. Check for any expected group activity like a gift exchange or Caroling. Be thoughtful, but don't go overboard on a white elephant gift. Most of the time, this can be something laying around the house. Just don't pull a Humphry the Elephant). If Caroling is on the menu, bring a warm jacket.
5. Dress appropriately. Is this a family gathering? Black tie formal work party? In most cases, a comfortable pair of jeans and nice shirt will suffice just fine. :) You're "artfully" ripped jeans (or Tripp Pants) in the bottom drawer may not be quite up to par though.
6. Think about a small easy-to-learn game you may want to bring with you. If I think ahead, I usually bring some dice or a deck of cards. This way I can play easy quick group games if the party lags (or if there are bored kids there). Some of these games can include:
Cards:
War (2 player)
13, or Liar Liar
Poker (2-8 player, usually needs chips though)
Go Fish (2-5 player)
Dice:
10,000 (2-8 player) (my personal favorite)
Low man
Yahtzee
Zombie Dice (you actually have to buy this one, but it's great, fun and easy to learn! about 12$ at target).
**Feel free to ask about rules for any of the above, and I can write up a quick rule sheet!!
Christmas Party number 2!!!!
Okay, you've survived your trip to your Aunt's, or relatives. Uh oh! Now they are all coming to your place! What to do? Don't panic. :)
a. Is this a dinner party, or just a games party? Either one is fun and enjoyable, but make sure your guests know ahead of time so they can plan accordingly.
1. Feel free to ask each guest to bring a side (potluck style) or dessert or drink to your party. By making this a request not a demand, guests can feel free to just bring themselves, or bring along something. Even if only half your guests bring things, it can save you quite a lot of time and effort.
2. Decide on your main course, and any side dishes you may want to have out for guests. Plan around a meal that is not too messy, easy to cook and clean, and easy to make more in case extra guests arrive. Common ideas include Ham, (or main dish of meat) hot dogs and hamburgers, spaghetti, etc.
3. Clean up before hand if possible. Empty all your trash cans, wash all your dishes, have an empty dishwasher available for guests to rinse and stack their plates.*
4. Have some decorations, and maybe some calm instrumental background music for guests to enjoy.
5. Pick up plastic cups for larger groups. Have a sharpie handy for guests to label their cups. Otherwise, I often have around 10-20 glasses all over the house because people (including me) forget which glass is mine, and just grab a new one.
6. Have some game/movie/activity planned. Around the holidays I recommend white elephant, or a Christmas movie, or games, or light looking/walking.
*My guests are usually family and close friends, so I have no problem asking them to "bus" their own dishes. However, if you'd rather not worry about that, just have them place them in the sink, and move them to the dishwasher later.
Christmas Party number ...!!!!!
You never know how many parties there may be! I've stashed some of my holiday baking away to take to a party here or there, and generally try to stay caught up with household chores that way I can be ready for the un-expected. ;)
Enjoy!
-Sheepdog-
Only 2-3 posts until Christmas. :) Feel free to leave any thoughts for topic ideas!!
2 comments:
Dear Mr. Sheepdog. I appreciated your comments on parties. As a social butterfly once said, "you have to go to parties on Christmas! Otherwise no one will see you shine!" Shine my aching tail. My cat instincts tell me to curl under the bed and take a nice loooong nap. But Fluffy the dog says these sorts of things are important. So I plan ton cat calling to my friends on Sunday, tubing on Monday, star wars on Tuesday, GranGrans on Thursday, and two more parties on Friday.
Needless to say, I need some Christmas party advice. So thanks. I will attempt to bring some hors devours, drink a little pop, and eat some cheese. Oh yes, and maybe chase a few mice while I'm at it. But don't quote me on it. As a famous mathematician once said, "just have chocolate handy so we can all avoid a hurricane".
I've been to... one party. Church Christmas party. I brought soup. I took home leftovers. I was okay with this.
Now there's nothing left until Christmas, at which point I'm driving to Gramma's, where I will be a guest, and I'm bringing her grandkitty. :) I guess I'm just not the social sheepdog some of my friends are. ;)
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