One of my favorite hobbies!

Well, the holiday season is in full swing!  That means shopping (thankfully, I got mine done a couple of weeks ago), eating and parties!  I love parties.  I love planning parties, I love hosting parties, I love attending parties.  Mastering the art of being a charming hostess is a trade Southern women excel at. It's in our blood.  And nothing makes me more excited than planning a good party!

My good friend, Monica, and I even tried to start a party planning business as a little side thing.  We named it Southern Soirees.  We planned a baby shower and it was wonderful!  But neither of us feels comfortable charging people and it just never took off.  Maybe someday.... :)

Now on the horizon, I have Monica's gender reveal party coming up that I'm helping her plan.  She is having her third child and it is so exciting!  She already has one girl and one boy, and this third one will be so loved!  Jared thinks it's a boy.  I think he just didn't want to wear pink to the party!  I think it's a girl based on some recent mythbusting.

Then I have my annual cookie swap party!  It's the 3rd year and I could not be more excited!  The first year, it was all super organized.  I had little plastic totes, printed up recipe books before-hand and had a milk station.  Last year, I was pregnant and tired and was lucky to even bake mine!  But this year, OCD party planner is back!  And we are going to have a hot chocolate beverage bar with homemade hot chocolate!

Our sweet friends Justin and Carrie are having their first baby in March, a boy named William!  So I get to plan my favorite kind of party-a baby shower!   Have some sweet ladies as co-hostesses, so it will definitely be a fun time!  With Pinterest out there now, the possibilities are endless for baby showers!

And then we have the big one......Jared's 30th birthday party.  When did we get this old?!?  I was trying to think of things that were Jared's style.  He is super laid back, dry sense of humor and wouldn't want a big to-do.  So I decided on a party focused on chili and beer!  He loves both and I think a chili bar in January/February sounds wonderful! 

I haven't forgotten about my RAK Experiment!  I just have been out of town and unable to really sit down and focus on blogging about the various days!  I still did RAK's, just while traveling and throughout the state, and need to get caught up on them!  Hope everyone is having a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!