Top 10 Christmas Party Tips

Patricia "Pacjac" Carroll and Betty Woods

I LOVE Christmas. And there is no better excuse than this amazing season to get together with friends for laughter, gifts, fun, and food. This year proves my point in the extreme! Just my family alone has 12 parties to attend in only three weeks. That's crazy.

But oh so fun!

I got to spend part of Saturday with the DFW Ready Writers, the Dallas chapter of the American Christian Fiction Writers, some of my favorite people! I've learned so much from these folks, and Saturday was no exception. Here are some pointers for great Christmas parties.

10. Break out the "ugly" Christmas shirts. I actually heard, a week ago, that ugly Christmas shirts were back in style this year. That's great. Course I had no idea they'd been out of style. If it's December, I'm in Christmas shirts. Just sayin'.

9. Start playing Christmas music after Halloween. Or you can do like Precious Redhead and shuffle Christmas songs in with the others all year long! Either way, you'll know all the words to Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree by the time your first party rolls around!

8. Play a goofy game. Now this is an ice-breaker often missed, but nothing starts up laughter like a silly game. You know the kind. Name tags of Christmas songs or icons pinned to everyone's back. They have to ask questions to find out who they are. Or an unabridged list of carols for folks to identify. Everybody loves playing those games. No? Really?

7. Bring a baked something to the party - every diet goes right out the window during December anyway, so make the most of it! Oh, and chocolate is always a good choice!

Janice Olson and Beth Shriver

6. Be ready to laugh a lot. Uninhibited joy just goes with the season.

5. Keep Advil and Tums handy. You will probably need them from they belly/head ache you'll get from too much chocolate/laughter.

4. Hold a gift exchange. The rules are simple. Everyone comes with a gift of roughly the same value. Each person (through number order or drawn names) either chooses a gift from the pile or steals a gift that someone else has opened. Make sure you have a limit for your stealing or you could be there all night! (Been there!)

Jane Thornton and Lynn Gentry

3. Have extra gifts on hand. (Goes with number 4.) Plan ahead for your gift exchange. Agree on an estimated value. Figure out what type of gifts to include. Do you want nice, purchased items or the white elephant type that no one will want? My in-laws used to go to a party where the same gifts showed up each year, just creatively decorated and wrapped differently. (One reoccurring gift was a toilet seat. One year it came with rhinestones glued all over it. Ha!)

2. Don't steal from someone you want to keep as a friend. (Also goes with number 4.) I'm a brat when it comes to gift exchanges so I always ignore this rule. Never have a problem with pouty faces, and I don't listen to the sob stories of why I should let the gift go. I even stole a book from a new friend at the party on Saturday. By the January meeting, she'll surely have forgotten, right? That wouldn't work so well for a neighbor or spouse, though.

1. Have your party AFTER Christmas! The weeks before Christmas are so crazy-full, and that last week in December is lay-around-the-house-and-play-with-your-new-toys time. Take advantage of sales on candy, music, gifts, and decorations! Have your guests bring a gift they don't want to keep for your gift exchange! And by spreading the festivities around a little, you won't get partied out!

But whatever you do, take every opportunity to share yourself during this season. Make memories for yourself and for others. Avoid perfection and settle for fun. Few will remember the food, and less will remember the decor or which sweater you wore, but all will remember good times.

What party tips would your top 10 include???

Be Blessed!