#tbt: Christmas Cookie Exchange Party

It’s been so fun to look back on past Christmas parties this month as I plan for this year’s holiday events! A couple weeks ago, I shared a #tbt to a 12 Days of Christmas party I hosted for my sorority sisters, and today I’m excited to share the details of a Cookie Exchange Party I hosted for my girls in my Girl Scout troop.

In the past, we’d always gone somewhere for our Christmas party (pottery painting, restaurants, etc.), so I was really excited to be hosting the girls at my house. Since it would be at home, I thought a pajama cookie exchange would make it feel really cozy, so I got to work finding the perfect invitation and Etsy did not disappoint!

This invitation had me at buffalo plaid. Because give me all things plaid! I handed out the invites at one of our fall troop meetings, and included a recipe card for everyone to fill out, plus a gingerbread spatula to assist with their holiday baking. As you can see on the invite, I asked everyone to bring two dozen cookies to share and trade.

I spent several weeks gathering items for the party, and anytime I found buffalo plaid or gingerbread man anything it came home with me. 🙂 When I’m prepping for a party, I like to gather everything together to see what I have before I decide where it will all go. Here’s what I ended up with.

I was lucky enough to have the day of the party off from work, so I got to spend the whole day setting up with Christmas movies and music playing in the background. It was so much fun!

By 6:00, it was party time and I was ready!! When my girls walked into the house, they were greeted by a photo booth with props and a Polaroid camera. This spot was definitely a highlight and made for a great keepsake from the party.

And, in another spot in the living room, I set up all the supplies for everyone to decorate a cookie tin to take their treats home.

It was so fun to see all their unique designs and I hope they’re putting the tins to good use again this year.

In the kitchen, I set up the food, a hot chocolate bar, and Rudoph’s spritzer (this drink is so yummy! And, there’s a tipsy version with vodka. Also yummy!). I kept the food simple, with chicken nuggets (I love you, Chick-fil-a!), a veggie tray, chips and dips, since I wanted the cookies to be the stars.

See those little gingerbread house mug toppers?! SWOON! And Anthropologie did it again this year with their gingerbread snowflake versions.

After everyone had eaten dinner, it was time for the cookie tasting! I set out plates for everyone to display their cookies, then we all sampled everyone’s treats.

Once we were done sampling, we voted and the winner got a prize! I’m so bummed I didn’t get a picture of the cookies on display or the prize…#beforemybloggingdays.

As the girls were leaving, I handed out party favors filled with gingerbread goodies!

It was such a fun night, and looking back on it has me super excited for this year’s party! I did a digital invite this year thanks to Paperless Post. Here’s a sneak peek…

I’ll be blogging all about the party next week, so I hope you’ll come back by!

Party on!
JW