CHRISTMAS COOKIE EXCHANGE

Everyone enjoys nibbling on a variety of Christmas cookies so hosting a Christmas cookie exchange would be a fabulous way to get all the ladies together around the holidays.

Choose a date, place and time to hold the exchange.  This type of get together is best when hosted in either yours or one of the other ladies homes.  Since the home would already be decorated for the holidays there is no need to decorate and besides it generates an atmosphere of Christmas spirit and hospitality. 

Hand out invitations at least a week in advance to give each lady time to purchase the ingredients she needs and to have time to do her baking.

On the invitation, ask each lady to bring 3 dozen of her favorite Christmas cookie.  Specify that the cookies must be homemade.  No store bought snacks for this event!!  However, some Christmas treats use store bought cookies as a base or as part of the ingredients and that is fine.

Suggestion:  You can also ask each lady to bring enough copies of her recipe to share with the other ladies, but that is optional. 

You will want to make sure you have plenty of coffee, milk and hot cocoa on hand for the occasion.  There will be a lot of sampling going on.

Provide each lady with a small gift box or cookie tin to take a sample or two of each cookie home, providing there is any left, lol.

Hint:  No matter where this gathering is hosted, for added fun and festivity, create a Christmasy atmosphere by playing Christmas music in the background.   Play a game or two, i.e. pin the nose on Rudolf.  Go caroling or have Christmas Carol karaoke.

If there are plenty of cookies and you are feeling generous, make up several goodie bags with a variety of cookies in each.  Then hop in the car and distribute the goody bags to the older folks in your church and neighborhood who are home bound for the winter and who might be in need of a little Christmas cheer.  You might also do a little caroling for them.

 

Whatever you decide to do, have a great time.  Enjoy the wonderful holiday season and

HAVE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

CHRISTMAS ORNAMENT-MAKE & TAKE

What lady doesn't love beautiful Christmas ornaments?  If you're like me, you want a few new ornaments each year to adorn your tree or perhaps you use them to embellish Christmas packages too.  There are MANY uses for ornaments.  My favorite are homemade ornaments.  Anyone can have store bought ones but the beautiful ornaments made by hand are the best. 

This year why not get your ladies together to make some beautiful hand made ornaments. 

Choose a date, place and time for your get together.

If you would like, as the hostess, you can provide a variety of plain ball ornaments in various sizes and some embellishments to use, or ask each lady to bring ornaments and things like ribbon, glitter and Christmas cards with beautiful Christmas scenes, paints, scrapbook paper, songbook paper, and anything else that can be used in making and embellishing ornaments.

Put all the ornaments and supplies together in one location and then share.  This way each lady has a variety of ornaments and embellishments to choose from. 

You can embellish plain ol' store bought Christmas ball ornaments anyway you like.  You can add things like lace and beads or just about any other embellishment you like.

You can also make ornaments.  The following are recipes for salt dough ornaments and cinnamon Applesauce dough.  To make ornaments from these doughs, simply make the dough and use Christmas cookie cutters to cut shapes in the dough.  Use a wooden skewer to put a hole in the top for your string or hanger.  (Note:  These must be made ahead of time, so they have several days to dry before embellishing them).

Salt Dough recipe
Cinnamon Applesauce dough

Ornaments can be painted, decoupaged or wrapped.  The possibilities are endless, just use your imagination.

Ornaments can be made from virtually anything.  Natural items like pine cones, nuts and acorns.  Paper, jar lids, puzzle pieces, games pieces, the list goes on and one. Use your imagination.

Once everyone's ornaments are all made and looking so beautiful, you can choose to either let each lady take her own home or exchange them.

Playing a chinese gift exchange game would be fun.  Place all the homemade ornaments on a table and put each ladies name into a hat.  One by one draw the ladies names from the hat.

The first lady gets to choose the ornament she wants from the table.  The second lady gets to choose one from the table or steal the first ladies and the third lady likewise can choose an ornament from the table or steal from one of the other ladies, and so on.  The more "stealing", the more fun the game is.

Provide some cookies and cocoa for a snack and have a wonderful time.

Happy ornament making and MERRY CHRISTMAS!

CHRISTMAS BASKET-MAKE & TAKE

Everyone loves receiving a gift basket for Christmas from someone who has put much thought, love and effort into making it especially for them.  With that in mind, wouldn't it be fun to get together with your group of church ladies and have a Christmas Basket-Make & Take.  The holidays are a great time of year to get together and fellowship and with a Make & Take, your time is well spent.

Choose a date, place and time to get the ladies together for a Christmas Basket-Make & Take.

 

Have each lady bring something as their basket (this can be anything, a wooden basket, a kitchen calender, large soup bowl, decorative Christmas sleigh, etc.)  Even the pouch of a Christmas oven mitt turned upside down makes a great "basket".  The term "basket" simply means the container they will be putting all their goodies into.

Also each lady will need to bring items to put into their baskets.  Things like Christmas candies and cookies are always great.  Also Christmas mugs and hot cocoa are great items to add to a basket.  Anything Christmasy works.  Pot holders, kitchen towels, decorative items, ornaments.  Have the ladies bring a variety of items. 

If you wish, you can designate a specific item for them to bring on their invitations, i.e.,  have one lady bring Christmas cookies, and another bring a large bag of Christmas candy, have another bring a few boxes of cocoa and another bring candy canes, or ornaments, etc.

You will need things like basket filler, cellophane bags in different sizes and assorted ribbon on hand to finish the baskets. 

Small Gift basket ideas might include:

--A Christmas mug filled with cocoa and cookies, wrapped in a small cellophane bag and tied with ribbon.  You can attach a spoon with the ribbon for added charm.

--A Christmas soup bowl filled with a can of Campbell's chicken noodle soup and individual packs of crackers and a few after dinner mints, wrapped in a small cellophane bag and tied with a ribbon.  A spoon could also be added to this one.

--A Christmas themed oven mitt,  turn the mit upside down and add a package of Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix, pouch of decorator's icing and attach a wooden spoon to the mitt's loop.  No wrapping needed.

A mixing bowl also works well as a basket.  Add a cake mix, mixing spoons and tub of icing or other various baking ingredients (dry goods only).  Wrap in a large cellophane bag and top with a ribbon.  You can tie a wooden spoon or a wire wisk on with the ribbon for a little extra cuteness.

Your baskets can be any size and have any kind of treat you want to add and embellished anyway you like. 

If you wish, have each lady bring a small treat for everyone to snack on at your meeting.  Basket making will make you HUNGRY. 

Suggestion:  Once everyone has their baskets made, they can either take their basket home and give as a gift to whomever they like, or for a gift exchange game, have the ladies stand in a circle holding the basket she made.  Read a Christmas poem (story) aloud to them, when you say the words left or right, have them pass their baskets either left or right.  When the story is finished, each lady receives the basket she is holding.

Suggestion:  If you wish (provided all ladies are in agreement) you could donate all the gift baskets to a local charity for disbursement to under privileged families in your area, or if your church hands out gifts to each family at Christmas, donate the baskets to your church.

Suggestion:  Have each lady invite a friend to your meeting, any of your meetings, because the more you include lost friends and loved ones into your group for fun times, the more they will get to know all of you and the more they will want to attend church. 

Have fun, and above all have a

VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!