2012 Cookie Exchange Countdown

Hello!

How are all of you?  Things are good here, and I’m feeling rested and ready to roll.  My husband surprised me with a (warm) weekend getaway for our anniversary, and it’s amazing how rested you can get when you’re away from the usual responsibilities of home.  Dare I say, we might have gotten a bit … bored?  That’s a new phenomenon for us these days.

So, the floors were finished on Friday (right as we left town), so when we came back today, I tried to move things back into place to snap some photos, but the daylight got away from me – pictures to come soon, I promise!

In the meantime, with the holidays upon us, I have been getting questions about how I created my cookie exchange invitations last year.  Remember these?

There are a couple of different ways to make these.  You can buy tags that are sold by Avery office products, or you can even make these from business card templates (also sold by Avery), that you can run through your home printer.  Avery provides a template that you can download online, to make the design process a little easier. 

I found the wreath in Microsoft’s clip art by searching for “Christmas” images.  (If you use the business card and want it to look like a tag, just use a pair of scissors to trim the top sides at an angle and give it that “tag” look.  I’m still checking to see if I can locate the template I used for this – email me if you’re interested!

This year, I’m going the more traditional route with my invites, but admittedly, spent way too much time scouring the internet for “the one”. 

I pinned all sorts of great invites out there.  You can see why I spent so much time looking!

I ended up with this little cutie from Invitation Consultants (not my info, just the sample):


www.invitationsconsultants.com


I think I’m going to add some prizes this year too.  Maybe one or two door prizes, and another as the result of a vote for best presentation or something like that.  I really enjoy this get together, because it’s a great chance to see friends and catch up before the holidays take over.  Plus, you walk away with a wide variety of six dozen cookies!  What’s not to like?

I know everyone has their own rules for cookie exchanges, but I try to keep it simple.

My cookie exchange “rules”:

  • Each guest brings six dozen cookies to exchange
  • No need to individually wrap the cookies – just bring them on a tray or container that can accomodate them
  • I provide a tray/box for guests to take their cookies home
  • Depending on the size of the party, each guest takes approximately 3-4 cookies from each tray for a total of six dozen 

I know some cookie exchanges have you package the cookies to exchange, and that works if you know exactly how many people you’re expecting to have.  But, since schedules are hectic, and plans change, my approach allows you some flexibility.  You take the number of people who are at the party, and divide it into 72 (six dozen).  So, if 20 people come to the party, that comes out to 3.6 cookies per person – so 3-4 cookies from each tray.  Make sense?  I know math and cookies don’t mix, but trust me, it’s easy.

I have always planned this event for the first weekend in December, which usually gives me an extra weekend of cushion after Thanksgiving. Not so this year, my friends. No extra weekend to get it all done.

Do you know what that means?

We will be at Defcon 1 here as the preparations begin, and I think my family will be evacuating the house steering clear of me as I go into Tazmanian Devil Party Prep mode. They’ve been through this before and they know the drill – “We’re having a party. Don’t touch anything, and do as Mom says. Or run far, far away.”

Are you planning a cookie exchange or holiday party this year?  Are you at Defcon 3? 

3 Comments

  • Reply
    Kim @ Savvy Southern Style
    November 13, 2012 at 1:23 pm

    I would love to have one of these some time. They sound like fun. I laughed at your family needing to leave. I get in that mode when anyone is coming over. Don't mess up the house and I only have the hubby and dog now.

  • Reply
    Carmel @ Our Fifth House
    November 13, 2012 at 1:55 pm

    How fun! I'd love to host a party like this!

  • Reply
    Anne Boykin
    November 13, 2012 at 6:13 pm

    Hi Jenny, I've been there when company is coming! I have a party this weekend and I'm already in cleaning-meanie mode. Your cookie party sounds wonderful.

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