christmas

This year it was our turn to spend Christmas with Mike's family in Philly. With 40 degree weather outside, the fire place was my favorite spot to hangout. I really like the way my in-laws decorate their house and it truly feels the Christmas there. I also enjoy the feast that my mother-in- law prepares for all of us.

So far I like that we rotate holidays every other year with our families (Thanksgiving here and Christmas there this year, next year Thanksgiving there and Christmas here). I think it's the only way to keep it fair between our families. Besides, this way Mike and I get to see the family dynamics of each family and we have a deeper understanding of the different traditions we were raised with. In the future when we start our own family we can choose what traditions we'll implement based on these experiences. 

   

cookie swap

Last year I hosted a craft night. This year was my first time hosting a cookie swap. This was also the first time all the ladies and myself had been to one. I really enjoyed having a them come over for the afternoon; we drank wine and ate cookies. It was nice to get together with them and catch-up before the holidays. We laughed and shared our cookie experiences, some of us had to make two batches in order to get it right. All the efforts were well worth it.

I added a little competition to this cookie swap. When I invited the ladies, I made sure to mention that there would be prizes for the most creative cookie, the most creative packaging of cookies and the best tasting cookies. After we passed around each cookie, we tasted them and explained our recipes a little bit. We then voted. While I tallied the votes,  the ladies wrote down their recipes on cute little note cards that I provided so that we all got each other's recipe. Then I gave the prizes to the winners.

Overall, my cookie swap party was a success. Is anyone else doing a cookie swap this year?