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How To Host Family Holiday Parties The Easy Way

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Do you enjoy hosting family parties during the holidays? I do. Thanksgiving, Christmas and the New Year generate a succession of opportunities to host holiday parties for family and friends. We have a bevy of birthdays and our anniversary dotting the landscape, as well. December is one busy month!  That is why I am so glad that I learned how to host holiday parties the easy way.

How to make your holiday celebrations so easy!

We are all very busy at this time of year, aren’t we? Gifts to buy – gifts to wrap – delicious desserts to make and serve – decorating, setting up and cleaning up, too. I love it all.

Like my party table? I made it for a small breakfast gathering. We served danishes, pecan rolls, muffins and lots of fresh brewed coffee! Since I was prepared, I had real enjoyment putting it all together.

What I do not like, especially during the holidays, is to feel rushed. If we were to run low on something important, like toilet paper for instance, then I would have to drop all of my party prep to go get it. That ruins the fun. So, as a precaution, I decided to stock up on necessary supplies ahead of time.

Stocking up on Kleenex and Cottonelle for the holidays

I chose to go to Walmart. I love shopping at Walmart. Everything I need is right there and their prices are really great. So, I had my list: Kleenex® facial tissue, Scott bath tissue, Viva paper towels and Cottonelle toilet paper.

Holiday decor Kleenex products for the home or office

What I had not anticipated was finding the beautiful new Kleenex® products designed for holiday entertaining. They are so festive and useful, too. You never can have enough facial tissue so I bought a bunch!

Holiday paper products from Kleenex

First, I picked out two 2-packs of the Kleenex® Perfect Fit style to put out on the counter like a Christmas decoration. They remind me of pillar candles, minus the flame of course! I selected the snowman, a Santa and two others with sparkly designs. Each one looks like it belongs in a holiday display. The Kleenex® Oval packages are quite elegantly designed. I have one of each in my bathrooms.

Stocking up on paper goods for the holidays

The Kleenex® Hand Towels, likewise, fit in anywhere. I love that I can keep one near my kitchen sink to use for drying hands instead of everyone using a cloth towel. It reduces some of the extra laundry and I am all about that!

Walmart is so convenient, whether shopping in the store or ordering online. After I came home, I wished I had bought more of the Viva holiday style paper towels so I ordered them online to be shipped to my house with 2-day free shipping. I didn’t want to go back to the store again that soon.

Order from Walmart onlineFor those who love the best of both worlds, you can order items online and have it waiting for you to pick up at the store. Want even easier? Skip the trip entirely and have your order delivered to your house with Walmart’s 2-day shipping. This time around, though, I was so glad that I went inside and saw the new Kleenex designs on display. My Kleenex boxes were the first Christmas decorating I did this year! LOL

Do you love Ibotta deals? In addition to the great prices and savings by shopping at Walmart, you can save even more money with Ibotta. Here are six deals for you …

Kleenex: $1.50 Offer valid on Kleenex® for any variety, Bundle Pack only. Offer excludes lotion varieties.

Kleenex: $.50 Offer valid on Kleenex® for any variety, single pack only. Offer excludes lotion varieties.

Scott: $.75 Offer valid on Scott® Bath Tissue for any variety, 4 ct. pack or larger (11/29 – TBD).

Viva: $1 – Offer valid on Viva® Paper Towels for any variety, 6 ct. pack or larger.

Cottonelle: $1 Offer valid on Cottonelle® Toilet Paper for any variety, 6 ct. pack or larger.

Now you know how to really enjoy those family holiday parties … the easy way!

Brunch party for the holidays with lots of sweet rolls and coffee

How to host family holiday parties the easy way! #ad #holidays #family Click To Tweet

Enjoy!

 

 

 

7 Ways to Make Lasting Holiday Memories

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The holidays all come with expectations.
  • We expect to make and eat lots of great food.
  • We expect to give and receive gifts.
  • We expect a certain amount of stress (some more than others) and its consequential fatigue.
  • We expect the budget to scream a little bit from the weight of all the “necessary” expenditures.
But do we expect to come away with tender loving memories? The holidays are really about being thankful for our blessings. They are about family and friends. We enjoy the holidays so much more when we create an atmosphere from which memories are birthed.
So, what do those memories look like? My recollections bring a picture of my “Grampy” dressed in his holiday vest. It was red plaid. With his thick white hair and happy eyes, he looked so regal. I can still see him carving the turkey at the head of the beautifully decorated dining room table. My dad continued the vest tradition where Grampy left off. Though there were so many great traditions about our family holidays, that one dominates my warmest thoughts.
Funny memories? My dear husband broke a tooth on his mom’s Thanksgiving turkey! It had been left in the oven way too long. She felt so bad about it. But we laughed. Chipping a tooth is no fun but it stayed a humorous memory that she got teased about for years. She was such a good sport (and to set the record straight, a very good cook.)
Oh yes, and in my family it was the Christmas tree that would fall over in the middle of the night. The trunk was crooked and it just didn’t want to stand up! Each morning we’d hear “Oh, no!” and one of my parents would “right” it again, decorations getting shabbier as time went on.
Child decorating Christmas tree; baby santa
So, think about creating some great family memories!
  1. Sights: Make everything beautiful. A vision of “Christmas” typically includes twinkling lights on an evergreen tree. Add to it candles in the window and on the table, stockings hung over the fireplace “with care” and beautiful wrapped presents.
Engage your family in a series of “decorating moments.” Start the process now, pre-Thanksgiving, and have fun with it till the New Year begins. Decorating doesn’t have to happen in one day. Enjoy it as you string it along.
  1. Sounds: Fill the air with music! Holiday music overflows with thanksgiving and joy. Turn on a radio station that plays continuous holiday songs or pop a CD in the player. Keep your home, and car, filled with the sounds of the season and remember to SING along! Engage your kids in singing the catchiest tunes. Everyone’s welcome. Musical talent not required!

 

 

Ducks 'n a Row holiday cookies; creating family memories at Christmas
  1. Smells: Bake, Bake, Bake! Holiday food fills your home with a sweet aroma as you bake desserts and roast the turkey. Fond memories of going to grandma’s house have been built around these delicious smells!

Ducks 'n a Row: Holiday memories; family time; #Christmas #Thanksgiving #memories
  1. Touch: Cuddle-time a must! We get so busy that we can forget to spend quality time close together. Everyone needs it: mom, dad, the kids…even the dog! It’s how we get re-charged. Read a storybook together. Snuggly blankets required. Schedule a pajama movie night with a great holiday classic. The menu? Popcorn and hot chocolate, of course.
  1. Team work: Everyone has a part to play. Getting ready for the holidays includes anticipation of good things to come. Everyone should be a part of the preparations. Bake cookies together. Wrap gifts. Dust and pick up “stuff.” Even the littlest tyke can have some kind of job to do – with much praise included. Remember, a two-year old will dust like a two-year old!
  1. Reach Out – who needs you? Your children and spouse need you, of course. Your parents, friends and relatives do, too. But, who else needs you? Is there someone you can think of who has no one at all? What can your family do to show them some love? Teach this giving-spirit to your kids when they’re young and they will reproduce it as adults. The giving spirit is not taught as much as it is “caught”. We all learn by doing.
  1. Embrace the moment. Remember to step back for a moment and appreciate what you have. No matter the struggles and hardships life may bring, there is something you can focus on that says “life is good”. Think on that! And take pictures of these family times for future memories. Make a date with your kids to sit down and put these memories in a scrapbook while they are still fresh!

 

7 wonderful ways to make memories during the #holidays #family Click To Tweet

 

Enjoy!

      

 

Note: this author is an Amazon affiliate. What does that mean? Well, anything that you buy from Amazon by first clicking on an ad, link or using an Amazon search window on Ducks ‘n a Row will, at no extra cost to you, result in a small commission for me. In advance “thank you!” … Sinea


Holiday Dinner Preparation Checklist

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By Sinea Pies

parties, events, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hannukah, Easter, dinner party

Getting ready for a holiday dinner? Your grocery shopping is complete. Guest list written. Now, to get ready for the event. There is nothing worse than forgetting something, or remembering it very late and having to scramble. Today, I am preparing for guests and this a simple prep list I am using to help me stay on track. 
Holiday Dinner Checklist
Get out and clean (where needed)…                                      
 
Utensils 
spoons 
ladels
Serving Dishes
special bowls
relish dishes 
candy dishes
gravy boats
butter dishes
fine china 
glassware
coffee mugs
bread basket
cream and sugar bowls
To Do
Make ice and store in freezer bags
Tablecloth and cloth napkins
Candles / centerpieces
Find matches (candles & fireplace)
Firestarters & logs for fireplace
Get out coffeemaker
That is what I have so far. 
Did I forget anything?