Letters to Santa Playdate

As much as I love throwing parties, sometimes it's nice to just have a few friends over for a low-key playdate.  No stress, no fuss...just fun! We recently had a Letters to Santa get together where the kids played, crafted and of course, penned a letter to the jolly old elf himself. 

The sweet and simple invites were designed using Canva. I  punched holes on the sides of the invites, threaded through a bit of bakers twine and attached a tiny candy cane. 

What's a play date without play dough? I used this quick and easy play dough recipe and added a bit of peppermint extract to make it candy cane scented. Throw a bit of glitter into the dough if  you're feeling extra festive!

 The kids had a blast putting together their own little mailboxes to house their Santa letters. We loved that the foam stickers were peel and stick...no messing with glue and waiting for them to dry.  Check out the hundreds of fun Christmas crafts for kids Oriental Trading has to offer this holiday season!

The Christmas mailboxes turned out so cute and I love the thought and creativity each child put into their craft.

The kids were SO excited to write their letters to Santa.  These color your own letter to Santa pages are perfect for little ones. They loved coloring the cute pictures and filling in the blanks with their names, ages and what they'd love for Christmas. 

The kids carefully folded their special letters to Mr. Claus....

....and placed them inside their Christmas mailboxes in hopes that elves will soon deliver them to The North Pole!

This was such a great way to get a few friends together to usher in the holiday season. I'm sure Santa can't wait to read these sweet letters!

Thanks for stopping by!

This review is based strictly on my opinion. I was provided the sample free of charge by Oriental Trading Company to provide my honest review. No other type of compensation was received. All ideas and opinions are my own. 

Hot Cocoa Kits with Oriental Trading Company & Free Printable

You can't go wrong with hot cocoa, am I right?  There is nothing more comforting than sipping a mug of steaming hot chocolate while curled up under cozy blankets watching Christmas movies. Even better if it's snowing outside!

 Today I'd love to share these adorable cocoa kits that are just perfect for friends, teachers and neighbors.

Oriental Trading has the cutest selection of Christmas mugs to tuck into your kits.  I chose these darling Santas because I couldn't resist that adorable winking face! 

How fun are these peppermint candy spoons? They are the perfect addition to your cocoa kits. Check out all the yummy Christmas candy you can add to your gift boxes.

To put the kits together, start by filling cellophane bags with any kind of hot cocoa mix  (8 tablespoons, enough for 4 servings) mini marshmallows and peppermint candy spoons.  Tie the tops of the bags with bakers twine or ribbon. 

Package everything up in festive Christmas goody bags and containers, tie with bakers twine and attach the Have a Cup of Cheer printable found HERE.

I can't get enough of these darling Christmas boxes from Oriental Trading that come in so many cute holiday colors and patterns. 

Your recipients will absolutely adore this fun and sweet gift! Cheers!

Thank you for stopping by!

This review is based strictly on my opinion. I was provided the sample free of charge by Oriental Trading Company to provide my honest review. No other type of compensation was received. All ideas and opinions are my own. 

Christmas Pajama Party with Tiny Prints

Hi friends!

I'm thrilled to have partnered with Tiny Prints to bring you a festive Christmas Pajama Party! What better way to usher in the holiday season than with cozy pajamas, snuggly pillows, Christmas movies, cookies and hot chocolate. You'll find all that and more at our annual Pajama Party!

The adorable Hearty Affair invitation was the perfect way to set the tone for the celebration. The sweet design reminded me of soft and cozy pjs and I hoped the guests would feel the same way upon receiving the invite. I loved the pop of aqua on the invitation to give a little twist on the traditional red and green.  

My cousin Leigh from Baby Gabey Cookies designed the cutest cookies that matched the invitation perfectly. How cute are these little hats and mittens? The guests munched on the merry cookies while enjoying a cup of hot chocolate with LOTS of whipped cream. Yum!

I love this darling cake topper from Glam Fete that adorns the naked cake. I added a couple bottle brush trees and a mini reindeer to the cake to add a little sweet simplicity. 

Each guest received a little goodie bag with these fun retro Rudolph stickers. They were a huge hit with the guests because....who doesn't love Rudolph? 

Christmas came early for our little girl. She received her very own personalized stocking to hang by the fireplace. Let's hope that jolly old elf stops by our house Christmas Eve and fills up this adorable stocking!

We played a few rounds of Christmas bingo, sipped hot apple cider and had the kids sing us some of their favorite Christmas songs. 

I wrapped new pajamas for our family in this gorgeous gift wrap that was personalized with our family name.  The wrapping paper is so sturdy that I'll be able to reuse it again! Gotta reuse, reduce, recycle, right? I have a hard time throwing away pretty paper so I'm happy this gift wrap will go a long way. 

How cute is that? I love having personalized wrapping paper and I can't wait to wrap more gifts with it for family and friends.

As the party started to wind down, the kids grabbed soft blankets and snuggly pillows and watched the classic movie, Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer. 

The party was a blast and it kicked off the holiday season in such a fantastic way. We loved every second of it!

A huge thank you to Tiny Prints for partnering with me, it's been an absolute pleasure!

Thanks so much for stopping by! 

Christmas Traditions

Can you believe Christmas is next month?? Eeek! I better get shopping!

 Today I wanted I'd share with you just a few of the traditions we do as a family during the month of  December. 

First up is the North Pole Breakfast. On December 1st, our little elf brings us a festive breakfast and ushers in the holiday season. This is almost as exciting as Christmas day itself for our daughter. She waits all year for that mischievous little elf to show up on the first day of December and loves all the wacky shenanigans he gets himself into. 

                   

                            Source: Catch My Party

Who doesn't love Christmas music?! Especially Christmas music that's conducted by the jolly old elf himself! This has become one of our favorite traditions during the holiday season. We adore the symphony and to hear all our holiday favorites makes the season so bright.  There are a few songs in which the audience is asked to join in to sing and it's pure magic. I love seeing my daughter's face light up and her little voice singing as loud as she can to some of her favorite Christmas songs.

To send a letter is a good way to go somewhere without moving anything but your heart.

~Phyllis Theroux

How perfect is this quote for Christmas. The tradition of sending Christmas cards helps me move nothing but my heart to those loved ones that live far away. The minute or so it takes to sign and address a card is time spent thinking of someone else. Even if you haven't seen your recipients in years, a Christmas card says that those ties haven't been broken and they are still in your thoughts. I just love Christmas cards and anticipate sending them each year. 

Check out these and other darling Christmas cards from Paperless Post.

Since our little one is an avid reader, this tradition speaks to her soul. I wrap up 24 Christmas books and we take turns opening a book each night in the month of December.  We read the story together as a family....usually by the glow of the Christmas tree. This is such a fun and inexpensive advent calendar idea because you can use the same books over and over again each year. I found most of our books at the thrift store and they cost anywhere from .50 to 1.00. 

Source: Pinterest

This tradition is a mother/ daughter favorite. Molly Mouse's Sugar Plum Debut is an adorable production put on by the Utah Children's Ballet Theatre. Over 100 mice scamper and dance across the stage as little Molly's school prepares for their holiday production of The Nutcracker. 

This show is perfect for younger audiences because it's not too long and the costumes, scenery and bright colors will keep a young child excited to see what will come next. 

My daughter, her friends and us moms have a little sugar plum fairy tea party before the show and then head off to the ballet. The girls ( and moms!) adore this tradition. 

 Here are a few more of our traditions that are just too much fun, I couldn't leave them out!

• Writing a letter to Santa
• Zoo lights
• Making paper snowflakes
• Sledding
• Sleigh rides
• Donate to shelter and toy drive
• Decorate the Christmas tree
• North Pole Express 
• Make Christmas cookies for neighbors
• Santa Brunch
• Snowman build off with friends
• Winter nature hike
• Go downtown to look at Christmas lights

Thank you so much for letting me share our holiday traditions.

What traditions does your family have? I'd love to hear them!

Thank you for stopping by!