When it comes time to attend a holiday party it is always a nice gesture to bring along a gift for the hostess. This is a nice gesture that says “thank you for inviting me and for putting in all the hard work that it takes to plan a party.” Bringing a food or drink item is always a nice way to help contribute to the party. You can also make or pickup a nice gift that the hostess can use once the party is over. Here are ten of my favorite hostess gifts that you can give during this holiday season.

1. Bottle of Bubbly. You can’t go wrong with giving the gift of a bottle of delicious bubbly for the holiday hostess. They have so many adorable bags and bottle decorations that you can dress your bottle in too.

2. A Container of Holiday Sweets. If you are like my mom during the holidays you will have a variety of sweets sitting around the house. Fill a container of holiday goodies to give to your hostess.

3. A Holiday Scented Candle. Everyone loves the smell of the holidays. Gift some holiday scented candles like these from Bath & Body Works.

4. A Christmas Ornament. Find an ornament that you give to your hostess as a thank you. My favorites are from Crate & Barrel like these little chubby gnome ornaments.

5. Kitchen Gadget. Any party host will probably know their way around the kitchen pretty well. You can find tons of holiday kitchen gadgets like spatulas, measuring utensils, and bowls that make the perfect hostess thank-you gift like these holiday spatulas from Sur-la-Table.

6. Drink Mix. Create this DIY to give to the hostess so that they can make a delicious cup or hot chocolate or tea post party. You can even add a little bottle of your favorite mix-in to top off the drink.

7. Customized Coasters. From acrylic to paper coasters you can find some great options when it comes to gift giving. I am loving these monogrammed paper coasters from Alphabet Soup.

8. Cheese Platter. Any hostess will fully appreciate a cheese platter with cutting utensils. You can get a nice bamboo one like this from HomeGoods.

9. Bar Set. No party host can ever have too many bar trinkets. From wine toppers, to drink stirrers they will all be greatly appreciated. This bar set from Martha Stewart can be picked up at any Macy’s.

10. Spa Goodies. After all the stress that can come with planning an event a little spa themed thank-you is the perfect hostess gift. You can pick up a great spa set like this one from Target.

Only 2 weeks until Christmas! What is you favorite gift to give to the party hostess? Happy Holidays!

xoxo
Megan

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Can’t wait for next month’s girl’s night theme dinner!! What country should we do for our next theme night dinner? Add your suggestions in the comments section below.

Have a fabulous Monday:) Only 15 days till Christmas morning!!

xoxo
Megan

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Step 4: When the chocolate has dried it is time to create your tree. Starting at the bottom of your Styrofoam cone take a strawberry and connect it with the toothpick. About half of your tooth pick will be in the strawberry and the other half in the tree. Continue adding strawberries, one next to the other, in circular rows until you reach the top.

Step 5: Find a pretty cake stand to put your beautifully decorated strawberry tree on for all your guests to see and then enjoy!

If you have any leftover strawberries you can enjoy the extra treat! Only 18 more days until Christmas! What are you planning on making in the kitchen this holiday season? Happy Holidays!

xoxo
Megan

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The possibilities are endless when it comes to planning a holiday party. You better hurry though! There are only 19 more days until Christmas! Have you finished decorating yet? Happy Holidays!

xoxo
Megan

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What a festive way to add some holiday cheer to your wedding. Only 19 days left until Christmas! How would you incorporate a tree into your decor? Happy Holidays!!

xoxo
Megan

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If you haven’t been able to tell from my holiday posts so far I love Christmas and everything that comes with it. One of my favorite parts about the holidays is decorating for the season. Between the lights, decorations and crafting I could not love this season anymore! Today I have ten of my favorite holiday decoration ideas to share with you.

1. Lights. It doesn’t matter if you go tacky or classic when it comes to hanging lights, they are all put a smile on my face when I see them. Some cities are known for their light displays and you can organize a tacky lights tour where you live.

2. Holiday Wreath. There are so many different options when it comes to making or buying a holiday wreath. You can go with the traditional pine wreath that will make any room smell amazing or create your own one. I made the bow wreath and the clothespin card wreath from Martha Stewart last year.

3. Wrapped Presents. Wrapped presents in a variety of colors and sizes always adds the perfect addition to a decorated Christmas tree. If I am giving someone multiple items for Christmas, I always try to wrap everything in multiple bags and boxes just to add additional gifts under the tree.

4. Advent Calendar. I love the ones that allow you to create a holiday setting or provide you the decorations for a holiday scene like the ones below from Etsy shop owner SesameSeedDesigns. If you can sew you could even make your own to use each year.

5. Holiday Centerpieces. From the traditional poinsettia to the holiday decorated vases you can never have too many holiday centerpieces around the house during the holidays. I made this candy cane centerpiece vase for some holiday flowers last year. 

6. Garland. Garland always spruces up any room in the house during the holidays. I even brought some in to decorate my office this year. The great thing about holiday garland is that you can get as creative as you want and can coordinate it to your space accordingly. I used pearl garland on the tree this year and we always string garland with berries and ribbon down the main stairway of my parents house. You can get really creative this year and make your own garland, like this DIY ornament garland from Pretty Quirky, to hang up in your house.

7. Christmas Stockings. The best decoration to hand on your mantle during this time of year is of course the Christmas Stocking. I have accumulated so many different stockings from the over the years. Last year I finally got a Lilly Pulitzer which I love! 

8. Gingerbread House. Since I can remember every year growing up my siblings and I have made gingerbread houses at my grandparent’s house for the holidays. You can see how our creativity has changed over the years, but over all they always make for a great centerpiece during holiday events at the house.

9. Ornaments. Homemade and store bought ornaments all look great on a Christmas tree. I have a combination of ones I have made, received as gifts and bought over the years on my tree right now. You can find so many DIY ornament ideas on Pinterest right now that no tree should ever be bear!

10. Christmas Tree. And last but not least the tree. Depending on where you live you can find trees made of lights, ornaments, as wall art, in multiple colors and the traditional live kind. Trees of all sizes, shapes and materials are great during the holidays! And of course the more trees the better I always say!

I can’t wait for the holidays to get here. There is only 21 days left until Christmas! Are you all ready for the holidays? Happy Holidays!!

xoxo
Megan

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Growing up in my house during the holidays always included a lot of cooking, baking and holiday treat making. One holiday treat item my mom taught me to make was holiday peppermint bark. This was something that was easy to make and all my friends loved getting a bag of it during the holidays. Last year I was looking through the December Martha Stewart magazine and saw that there was an article on the bark that I have grown up making. However, this article didn’t just have the traditional peppermint bark that I was used to making. It also had so many new varieties that sounded amazing like s’mores, cookies-n-cream, trail mix and so many more! They were all delicious!!

So for today’s holiday foodie post I have a few of my favorite bark recipes for you to try at home. To make holiday bark you need baking chocolate, a baking sheet, a glass mixing bowl and your favorite bark toppings.

Step 1: Melt the chocolate in a mixing bowl in 45-60 second increment in the microwave, stirring in between, until melted.   –or-    Melt the chocolate in a double broiler on the stove.

Step 2: Once melted, pour the chocolate onto the baking pan, smoothing the chocolate out to create an even coat over the entire pan.

Step 3: While the chocolate is still warm, sprinkle your bark toppings on top of the chocolate. Tap the pan onto the counter a few times to set the toppings into the chocolate.

Step 4: Put the pan into the freezer for the bark to harden.

Step 5: Once hardened, take the bark out and break into pieces. Enjoy!

Some of my favorite bark combinations are:
     - White Chocolate with Red and Green Peppermint
     - Milk Chocolate with Graham Crackers and Mini Marshmallows
     - Milk Chocolate with Oreo Crumbles

Holiday bark candy is always a hit for any type of gathering. Give some as gifts or put some out at your holiday party. Which one are you going to try? Have a wonderful weekend!!

xoxo
Megan

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Every year I attend at least one Christmas or holiday party that has a gift exchange. If you are hosting a holiday party this is a great way to get all your guests involved and will guarantee to provide some laughs. You will see some of the most random gifts appear at a gift. Here are 3 of my favorite gift exchange games you can choose from.

1. Left-Right Game. This one is a classic for any gift exchange as everyone gets to listen to a fun story while passing the gifts around in a circle. You will gets some laughs from the story as well as trying to keep up with all the “rights” and “lefts” that you will hear. You can make up your own story or use the classic Night Before Christmas story that has had a little twist!

2. Secret Santa. You can’t forget the classic gift exchange of Secret Santa. Get everyone together before your party and have each guest draw a name to see who they will be shopping for. If you can’t get everyone together, as the host, you can either assign each guest another guest’s name or you can use an online site to do it for you. A great one to use is SecretSanta.com. They let you send out all your invitations through the site, collects RSVP’s and will randomly generate and send out everyone’s Secret Santa.

3. White Elephant. This game has a few more rules to it than the others. To play ask all your guests to bring a present to put in the gift pile. Once you have everyone together you have each guest draw a number which will give them the order of the gift choosing. The person with #1 starts by selecting a gift. Next is #2’s turn. They can either take #1’s gift or choose their own from the gift pile. If #2 takes #1’s gift then #1 chooses a new gift from the pile. Next is #3. They can choose to take either gift that is already unwrapped or a new one from the pile. If #3 steals the gift from #1 or #2 then that person can steal the remaining gift or open a new one. During each round (each number starts a new round) each gift can only be stolen once. However, that gift can be stolen again during the next round. A round ends when a gift has been opened from the present pile. This continues on until the last gift has been opened from the pile.

If you choose to one of the group games make sure all your guests bring wrapped and unmarked presents. It is also important when organizing a gift exchange to let all your guests know what the spending range is. A pretty standard gift exchange range is between $10-15.

No matter what type of gift exchange you choose to do every guest will have a blast participating. Which gift exchange game is your favorite? Happy Holidays!!

xoxo
Megan

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Between Thanksgiving and New Years you will see tons of couples getting engaged. Once engaged, the planning begins and you and your significant other will need to decide who you want by your side.

As a bride-to-be some of the fondest memories you will have will be from the time spent with your girls. From the bachelorette party to the showers and getting ready the morning of the wedding your bridesmaids will constantly be at your side. Once you decide who you want by your side it is time for you to pop the question! Here are some great ways you can ask your girls to be a part of your big day.

1. Cookies. Get dress cookies made in one of your wedding colors for each of your girls. This customized cookie is from Navy & Lavender but you can also make them yourself.

2. Party Box. Put together a box of a few things that your bridesmaids will need on the big day to send to each of the girls. Your bridesmaids are going to do a lot for you during the planning process so a gift is always nice. This DIY gift is from Something Turquoise. 

3. Ring Pop. Pop your own question to your girls with their own wedding ring. This DIY project doesn't cost a lot and 

4. Paper Dolls. Take a craft from when you were younger and make a paper doll invite with each of your bridesmaid's names on the dress. For a DIY tutorial check out the post from Once Wed. 

5. Wine Bottles. Ask your girls to be there "sipping at your side" with customized wine bottle labels on their favorite bottle of bubbly. 

And the great part about all of these is that you can customize them to your girls! Which one is your favorite? Share your favorite idea below!

xoxo
Megan

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