Christmas Cookie Exchange

This year, I hosted my second annual Christmas Cookie Exchange.

For 25 years, my mom hosted her own cookie exchange for friends and she has passed the tradition along to me! 

My mom and sister Betsy flew up from Orlando to come to the party which was so special to me to have them here with me.

I used Postable to mail out invitations for the party making it super easy!

(Also used Postable to send our Christmas cards this year)

I asked friends to bring 3 dozen cookies to share. I made homemade Nutmeg Cookie Logs which are a family staple for us at Christmas. They certainly take some time to make but are SO worth it!

It was also helpful to have ladies bring some food to help me, which was a lesson I learned last time.

I had some Christmas music playing in the background from a Spotify playlist I created. When ladies arrived, I had them sign the guestbook (I'm hoping to keep the guest list going each year), then we mingled in the kitchen for a while. My sister helped me make 

a simple and delicious Champagne cocktail which I shared the recipe on the blog last week. 

Then we took our food and sat in the living room while I read the Christmas story out of the Bible in Luke Chapter 2. I enjoy getting to read it at the Cookie Exchange with friends, I rarely get to hear it myself except during church on Christmas Eve so I loved sharing it.

Here are a few pictures from our fun night together!

So special to have my mom and sister Betsy fly up from Orlando just for the Cookie Exchange

Champagne cocktail recipe here

I love hosting and enjoyed having such special friends over!!

xox, A

Christmas Champagne Cocktail Recipe

Last night was my 2nd Annual Christmas Cookie Exchange and I knew I could count on WhitneyA for a brilliant and simple cocktail idea and she didn't disappoint!

Check out the recipe and video below for instructions on how to replicate:

Ingredients

2 bottles champagne/sparkling wine

2 cups pear nectar/juice

2 cups cranberry juice

Garnish with mint leaves and frozen cranberries

Have you had any fun, holiday cocktails recently you'd like to share? 

Please add them in the comments section!

xox, A

PS - I'll share more on the Cookie Exchange later, but wanted to share this cocktail recipe since there were a few requests via Instagram 🎄🍾🍪

Slow Cooker Recipe: Pork Tenderloin

Earlier this week H and I tried a new recipe in our crockpot for a delicious pork tenderloin. Our friend Curt told to use dry onion soup in the slow cooker so we thought we'd give it a try!

I found a recipe online at AllRecipes.com with the dry onion soup packet, along with red wine, soy sauce, garlic and black pepper. Here's a look at our dinner.

 Ingredients
1 (2 lb.) pork tenderloin
1 (1 oz.) envelop of dry onion soup mix - we used Lipton
1 cup water
3/4 cup of red wine - we used Winc's Wordsmith
1/2 garlic clove
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
fresh ground pepper to taste

Cook for 4.5 hours

We used Winc's (formerly Club W) Wordsmith red wine for the recipe, then enjoyed some with our meal. Use our link for a discount on your first order - and we'll get a free bottle too!

BEFORE
The clear liners we get from Publix are a lifesaver when cleaning up!

AFTER

Do you have any crockpot recipes to share? We're new to using ours and looking for more recipes!

xx, A

Stock the Bar Party & Sangria Recipe

Even though my new hubby is obviously my roommate now, I think my college roommate Juliann will always be referred to as "my roommate." Well my roommate is getting married at the end of the month (EEEEKKK!) and some of the other bridesmaids and I wanted to host a couples shower for them.

I found these adorable invitations on Etsy and we had the party last weekend at Houston's and my new apartment.

Houston was such an enormous help getting ready, running errands for me, going to the grocery store, the list goes on and on! And I couldn't have done it without my sweet mother-in-law, Kristin, Fallon and Whitney's help too.

I made this yummy sangria recipe I found online and would highly recommend it! (I was nervous about making sangria for the first time for a lot of people, but my friends at work reassured me that you can't mess it up!) 

RECIPE:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
One can of Sprite 
Add the juice of 3-4 limes.  You can heat your limes in the microwave for about 20 seconds to help them let go of their juice.
Stir.
Add your sweet, white wine. I used  Pinot Grigio and pour the entire bottle.
Stir some more.
I used a white grape/peach juice blend.  Any brand is fine, just get one with no sugar added / 100% juice. Add a cup of your juice.
Stir again.
Now it's time to add your fruit. I used fresh strawberries and canned peaches (because they were out of fresh ones) but you can use fresh, frozen, or canned fruits - whatever works best for you!

Definitely let it sit for a few hours, I even made ours the night before so the flavors could soak in!

I'll post some party pictures soon!

xox,
A