Title: Christmas Parties Word Count: 591 Summary: Christmas parties are something that most people look forward to all year long because they are a joyful gathering of friends, family, great food, and shared memories. There are lots of things that probably go into your Christmas parties such as preparing food, having a good music selection, sending out beautiful invitations, creating or buying Christmas table arrangements, or preparing your home for overnight guests. The great thing is that you can make your home look very f... Keywords: christmas party, christmas, party, recreation, holidays Article Body: Christmas parties are something that most people look forward to all year long because they are a joyful gathering of friends, family, great food, and shared memories. There are lots of things that probably go into your Christmas parties such as preparing food, having a good music selection, sending out beautiful invitations, creating or buying Christmas table arrangements, or preparing your home for overnight guests. The great thing is that you can make your home look very festive without spending a lot of time or money on it, so that you can spend more time visiting with your guests and catching up with many people that you may not have spent much time with since your party last year. Christmas crackers Christmas crackers, cookies, and some simple foods will make feeding your guests quite simple. If you want to have more filling foods, you might want to consider having the party catered or purchasing pre-cooked foods so that you do not have to worry about cooking great food for you and all of your guests to eat at your party. If you really want to have homemade food at your Christmas parties, you may want to have some friends or family members come over and help you prepare the food and make a tradition out of that as well. Or, you can always make your Christmas parties potlucks so that you have a different selection of foods to offer your guests every year and simply say that you’ll provide the Christmas crackers, cookies, and one prepared dish every year but you want help feeding the masses! Most people love potlucks, so you’ll find that most of your guests will be quite receptive to this idea. If you are busy preparing food and Christmas table arrangements and other decorations and you just can’t seem to get your home cleaned, think about employing your kids or a neighbor to help you get things tidied up quickly. Just one extra pair of hands can help you get the job done in a lot less time. Or, create a checklist for yourself that will help you get a few things done each day before your Christmas parties so that you do not have stress about cleaning the day of your party. If you want Christmas table decorations as well as other decorations to make for your party, the Internet and craft stores offer many great ideas for Christmas crafts that will make your home look even more festive. Just hanging strands of garland on your door frames is a simple and inexpensive way to make your home look great for your Christmas parties, so don’t think you have to spend a ton of money to make your home look great. A great Christmas party table decoration is to simply buy a pre-decorated wreath to place on the table and then find a great scented candle to put in the middle of it. If you have a large table you might think about placing more than one on the table. Christmas parties should be a lot of fun, so don’t let yourself get stressed out as you plan for the party in your home. Some of the best Christmas parties are that way because of great planning and because the hostess isn’t afraid to be thrifty and even ask for help. Christmas is about bringing family and friends together to have fun, not to stress you out! So focus on enjoying friends, family, and fun at your next Christmas party!