Christmas Party Entertainment: Games, Snacks and More

Are you planning to host a Christmas party this holiday season? Planning a party can become overwhelming with all the details that need to be tended to. Here are some ideas to make entertaining your guests a little easier. These suggestions will also help you and your guests enjoy the holiday celebration even more.

The earlier you start your planning, the easier it will be for you when its time to celebrate. Send your invitations out early in December. Give your guest plenty of notice. Ask your guest to RSVP about 5-7 days before the date of the party. Even after you have a final guest count, be prepared for a few extra guests in case someone decides to bring a friend along with them.

If you are having a lot of guest over, you may want to plan a few game to help keep everyone entertained and having fun. Consider purchasing inexpensive gifts to reward the winners with. Wrap the gifts up as presents and display them around your Christmas tree. Be sure to purchase gifts for men and woman and tag them properly. Some inexpensive gift suggestions are lotions, body wash, sets of holiday dish towels, soaps, Christmas cookie cutters, Christmas candles, Christmas Cd's, small shaving kit, men's ties, glassware and coffee or tea cups filled with flavored coffee or tea bags. If you have access to a computer and a printer, you can make your own holiday cookbooks to hand out to each of your guest.

If your budget does not allow for you to purchase gifts yourself. Consider asking guest to be involved in a gift exchange. Every guest can bring a pre-wrapped present. The women bring a gift for another woman and the men bring a gift for another man. Tell the guest simply to label their present whether it is for a man or woman. Guessing what is in each present is fun. No one will know who will pick which present. To make the gift exchange fair. You can also set a price limit for the gift exchange. For example, ask that the gifts purchased cost between $20.00 and $25.00. Choose a price limit you feel you and your guest will be comfortable with.

Here are a few games that will keep your guest entertained at your Christmas party:

Santa's Goodies Sack: Create small Santa Sacks for each of your guest. Simply wrap small goodies using squares of red fabric of felt, secure each bundle with a strand of red, green or white ribbon creating a small Santa Sack. Be sure to designate one sack as the Naughty Sack. The Naughty Sack will be filled with small pieces of coal or small pebbles or rocks painted black to look like coal. Distribute one Santa Sack per guest. Instruct your guest not to peek into their Santa Sack until its time. After every guest has their Santa Sack, allow the guest to unwrap their Santa Sacks to reveal the surprise of goodies you've hidden inside. But in this game one Santa Sack will be considered the Naughty Sack. The twist to this game is the guest with the Naughty Sack is actually the winner. The owner of the Naughty Sack is allowed to choose a reward from the selection of pre-wrapped gifts.

Who Am I: Make signs to place onto each guest backs. Write the names Christmas character onto each sign, Scrooge, Santa Claus, Mrs. Claus, Santa's elves, Rudolph, Frosty, etc.. Each guest get their turn to stand up and try to guess who they are. They are only allowed to ask questions that have a yes or no answer. Once the person has finally guessed who they are, they are allowed to claim their present.

Christmas Scrabble: This game is played very similar to the traditional board game Scrabble. However, in this game each player receives ten letter tiles. When a word is made and letter tiles are used the players are allowed to get more tiles from the tile bag. Each player can also trade a letter tiles with other players. Both players have to agree on the trade. They are only allowed to spell words associated with Christmas time. Word suggestions: snow, Santa, bells, sleigh, frosty, snowman, reindeer, Rudolph, elves, jolly, presents, wreath, evergreen, carols, green, red, holly, etc..

If you are planning to have children at your Christmas party you will want to make sure they are entertained also. Set up a small project table for the children. Print out word puzzles and fun Holiday pictures for the kids to color. You can also have a section of the table dedicated to Christmas crafts. Supply the children with multiple items to help them create their own Christmas ornaments. Recommended supply list: crayons, color pencils, glue sticks, tape, red and green ribbon, pipe cleaners, plastic Christmas balls, popsicle sticks, markers, small pieces of evergreen, Christmas cookie cutters, strips of construction paper, scissors, strings of beads, and holly berries. Make sure the supplies is age appropriate. Assemble some of the Christmas crafts yourself and display them on the project table to help give the kids some inspiration and ideas. Set up an extra pre-lit Christmas tree just for the kids to hang their completed ornaments and decorations on. If you are aware of how many children you are expecting at your holiday gathering, make stocking stuffed with fun little goodies for the children.

If you plan to invite a large group of people, have a Christmas Cookie Swap. Ask your guest to bring fresh baked homemade Christmas cookies to the party. Each of the guest can have fun sampling each others cookies. You can even have a secret ballot to vote for the best cookies. Having a cookie swap can be a big help to you. This will lessen your time spent in the kitchen and help your budget.

Being well-prepared and planning ahead is the key to any party or gathering. Spending extra time planning your evening before the party begins will allow you more time to relax and enjoy your own party you have worked so hard for.