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Holiday parties | Pad Patter 12.9.16

keepscrappin

keepscrappin

ScrapWithTheWind
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Tonight is our ward Christmas party and Saturday is my hubby's work party. Our anniversary is in December and we have family parties for Little Christmas Eve and Christmas Eve. I'm both excited and a little apprehensive about all these parties. I love eating all the food and chatting with new and old friends, but I also struggle with finding time for all the parties and with what to wear. How about you?

Holiday parties... are you going to any? Are you hosting? Or do you avoid them at all costs?
 
WE don't go to my hubby's Christmas one, it is more of a drinking party. They have one in the summer at our little zoo, and it is so much fun. More family geared! Our children's church (the kids) is tomorrow all day. My kids are so excited. I love it, because I can wrap presents! yeah
Then we have an end of the year, Christmas Banquet in a lodge up in the mountains. It is just magical and very special. We honor those who have been such helps thru the year. Our choir sings, the children's choir too(my fav) and the fellowship is my favorite!
We are having a small gathering from our church on the 22nd. A group of us go caroling thru December and we will come and have some hot chili afterwards!
 
Thankfully my office decided to just do an ornament exchange & soup potluck during lunch (yesterday actually!) It was my day off- but still fun to go into the office just for fun things! The nice thing about it was it wasn't 'one more thing' to add to the calendar you know! ;)

Hubby's office is doing a small dinner party at a super yummy restaurant next week! Easy peasy.

and that's all! Well, the weekend before Christmas we make the trip to do Christmas with my Dad & stepmom on Saturday & then Mom on Sunday. But that's just family stuff so not too much pressure there! ;)

Good luck on your outfits! That's the hardest part!
 
The kids have a co-op party, we have a church Christmas party and then we had a Christmas formal piano recital to go to. Sometimes a friend will host a party and we'll go to that. So, it's pretty low key over here. Both parties require gift giving...and when you have 7 kids that is when it gets stressful! Gift exchanges stress me out!
 
The ward party will be pretty laid back... just appetizers and desserts.

I do think my hubby's work party will be fun. It's dinner and a play. We've done that before and the Christmas plays are always fun parodies. I'm not sure which Christmas classic they'll be making fun of this time, but I'm sure I'll enjoy it.

Scrapping with Liz said:
The kids have a co-op party, we have a church Christmas party and then we had a Christmas formal piano recital to go to. Sometimes a friend will host a party and we'll go to that. So, it's pretty low key over here. Both parties require gift giving...and when you have 7 kids that is when it gets stressful! Gift exchanges stress me out!
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oh yes, the gift exchanges stress me out too. Hubby's family always likes to do white elephant gifts, but some like nice gifts and some like to give yucky stuff, so it can be stressful. One year we had several kids in tears because they got yucky stuff when others got good stuff. I wish I could get through to some of the adults that it needs to be kid-friendly or we need to do the kids' white elephant game separately.
 
We don't have a heck of a lot of Christmas parties.... and usually if we do, they are low key and not stressful!

We do have 2 that are soon... one is just bring a dessert or appetizer, no gifts. The other is easy, appetizers, light meal, and dessert with a small kids gift exchange. We simplify by sticking to a budget of $15-$20, play hot potato and whatever gift they get is their gift. Last year, my son got one of our exchange gifts, lol! The kids don't care, they just want a gift and to see what's under the wrapping. Plus, they trade on their own. :P
 
I used to go to a holiday dinner at an expensive restaurant for my job but the doctors decided to stop doing it (a couple of yrs ago). I used to love it b/c I don't normally have a $100 dinner and the food would be just incredible. We missed my hubs' Xmas work party b/c we were away that wkend (Black Friday wkend). We'll be visiting with some friends and family too but no parties planned, just casual get-togethers. On Boxing Day we were invited to an afternoon party so we'll see, maybe we'll go.
 
I get together with my scrapbook friends for a gift exchange which is always fun. We also had a small work part this year with our department at someone's house. We also sometimes host a party for friends or work at our house -- we're doing a small one this year -- but I prefer not to :D !
 
No parties here. We used to have work parties, but in 2013 our parent company sold our division to an investing firm - so there is now way they are going to host anything big! They watch every penny!! Ha ha!!
 
My department at school is having a Christmas breakfast pot luck on Wednesday on next week. It's always fabulous. I love breakfast food :) We decided not to exchange gifts this year and took up a collection for a needy family instead. Then the school is doing a lunch pot luck on Thursday, since next Friday is our last day. That's about the extent of holiday parties for me, unless DH's work has one that I don't know about yet.
 
I have dropped and picked up DH from 2 work ones this week & helped run and pack up DD's end of year one at the start of the week as well - i splurged on a frappe drink from McDonalds as my own little party after one of the award events this week LOL DS has an end of year disco this week but i'm just hanging for Fri afternoon when it's all done and dusted apart from family do's.
We have/had our friends end of year get togethers at the start of Dec so we can have some breathing room at the business end of the month!
 
My husband has two work ones... one in Canada last night and another one for the Chicago office coming up, but they are employees only which is fine by me.

I went to the moms club ornament exchange for Clara's new high school on Wednesday... that was fun! I had dreaded it a bit as I'm not a fan of swap type exchanges where people "steal" gifts from each other. But for this one we all just picked a candy cane. The canes had a tag with a number on it, you walked around and introduced yourself to people until you found your match. Then you just exchanged ornaments. It was fun and a good ice breaker!

Sunday night is Lessons and Carols at church. The best part about that is the cookies and cocoa reception after! Someone always brings the best soft maple cookies every year. I haven't tracked down the baker though! I told the committee that they need to sell a cookbook with recipes from the reception... I'd definitely buy that!!

Besides family gatherings, I think that's it for us. The kids have some gift exchanges, but they're teens so they organize it all themselves.
 
The only annual party we generally go to is at my friend Shannon's house. But she and I have sort of fallen out of friendship this year. Actually, when I think about it, the last time I saw her was at her Christmas party last year. She texts every few months asking for dates when I'd be available to get together, and she either plans something and then later cancels it, or she doesn't respond and then texts a few months later. She texted in a panic in July when she realized we were in Long Beach at the same time because she was worried we'd run into them (and they were with other friends and couldn't make time to stop by our place). It was just weird. She makes time to get together with the rest of her friends, but can't make time to even have lunch with me, so I've sort of decided to be done with that. I've felt bad about it all year, so I'm opting out of the party.

A couple of years ago, my hubby's departmental holiday get together was an interesting "dinner and theater" evening out, which was a nice thought... BUT was at a burlesque show in Seattle. Kind of crazy. Especially since an older woman organized the whole thing. All kinds of awkward. :giggle
 
scrapsandsass said:
The only annual party we generally go to is at my friend Shannon's house. But she and I have sort of fallen out of friendship this year. Actually, when I think about it, the last time I saw her was at her Christmas party last year. She texts every few months asking for dates when I'd be available to get together, and she either plans something and then later cancels it, or she doesn't respond and then texts a few months later. She texted in a panic in July when she realized we were in Long Beach at the same time because she was worried we'd run into them (and they were with other friends and couldn't make time to stop by our place). It was just weird. She makes time to get together with the rest of her friends, but can't make time to even have lunch with me, so I've sort of decided to be done with that. I've felt bad about it all year, so I'm opting out of the party.

A couple of years ago, my hubby's departmental holiday get together was an interesting "dinner and theater" evening out, which was a nice thought... BUT was at a burlesque show in Seattle. Kind of crazy. Especially since an older woman organized the whole thing. All kinds of awkward. :giggle
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Oh dear. I hope things are better for you this year.
 
DH's work Christmas party is tonight. It's abt 45 minutes from here at a restaurant I hate so I told him weeks ago that I wasn't going to the trouble of attending a party where I won't know a soul that's 90 minutes' drive from here & requires me to get a babysitter to eat disgusting food. I told him that he was welcome to go (there is nothing he loves better than a fresh audience for his stories!) but he's decided not to.

DD's class & hallway are having parties next Thursday and Friday that require $$$ and a gift so I'll have to figure that out this week.

My local friends either don't have Christmas parties or don't invite me! :cornfused
 
Fancy Christmas dinner for the volunteers at the animal charity because this year they have a big anniversary, and they want to say thank you. Apart from that ,next Tuesday it is a public holiday here,and weather permitting my hubby and I are going to Valletta, to enjoy the Christmas lights,hear some singing and hopefully a band playing in the square. Looking forward to that, we have a treat at the end of it all,so win win.
 
Hubby's work party is during the day (a lunch) and I don't usually go to it.

Dad and step-mom have a "gathering." Seriously. That's what she calls it. It's this week, but we won't be going to it.

My mom used to have an open house each year. It was so much work and while I loved seeing family, it really made me feel tired and unhappy. I'm glad we decided to keep things on the small side lately.
 
We went to our first Christmas party last night. My side of the family. We had a great time. You could bring a Home made gift or a white elephant. We put the gifts under the tree draw numbers (there was 19 people that participated) you can steal a gift game. The best gift that kept getting stolen was my brother made a small clock out of two different woods.

Wednesday I have my Woman's Bible Study group Christmas party. We are doing an ornament exchange. Brunch meal.
 
tkradtke said:
I went to the moms club ornament exchange for Clara's new high school on Wednesday... that was fun! I had dreaded it a bit as I'm not a fan of swap type exchanges where people "steal" gifts from each other. But for this one we all just picked a candy cane. The canes had a tag with a number on it, you walked around and introduced yourself to people until you found your match. Then you just exchanged ornaments. It was fun and a good ice breaker!
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This is a wonderful idea!!!
 
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