The holiday season is here and holiday parties are in full swing. If it’s your turn to host the annual holiday party for friends and family, don’t sweat it! Not only do you have the best location, your lakefront home at the Lake of the Ozarks provides an amazing backdrop for any party, but we have some helpful tips for you. Mission Bay has put together a few tips to help eliminate the stress that comes along with planning and executing a holiday party.
Choose a Theme
Whether your party is on the smaller side, or the guest list is over 100 people, having a specific theme and tone for your party will help achieve the maximum holiday feel-good status. A great way to come up with a theme? Make a list of what your guests have in common and what everyone likes.
Large Group: Celebrate with a movie theme. Take a poll ahead of time of people’s favorite holiday movies. During the showing of the movies, serve a variety of holiday-themed popcorn and set up a hot chocolate bar.
Just Your Girls: Do a cocktail tasting party. You can have everyone bring their favorite holiday cocktail and try them all out. You can make drinks with and without alcohol.
If kids are coming: Incorporate cooking and decorating to keep the kids involved. You can use holiday cutout cookies and create delicious holiday cookies.
Create Your To-Do List
Organizing and hosting a holiday party can be overwhelming. The easiest way to help eliminate stress is to create a to-do list.
Who will be invited and how will I invite them? Look back at the theme you have chosen and it will help you identify your guest list. You had certain people in mind when deciding on the theme, invite them! You can then determine which method of communication you want to use to invite everyone. You can do a printed invitation or even an electronic invite. Be sure to send invites at least 2 weeks ahead of time.
When Should You Have Your Party? The holiday season is extremely busy for everyone, but if you plan ahead, you can increase the chances that almost everyone you invite will be able to make it.
This is just a start to your to-do list. Every party is different and will have different items on their to-do list. Make sure you help reduce your stress level and sit down and create your party’s to-do list.
Stick To Your Budget
The best parties don’t have to be the most expensive and during the holiday season, the last thing you want to do is break the bank throwing a holiday party. Before you buy anything, take inventory of what you already have and then create a list of what you need and set a realistic budget.
Create a spreadsheet – itemize things you already have like decorations and ingredients. Knowing what you already have will save you from buying duplicates and will save you time and money.
Consider a potluck – incorporating a potluck into your party is not only a great way to get your guests involved, but it saves you from spending a lot of money.
Cook Ahead of Time
Prepare your menu and do as much prep ahead of time as possible. This will allow you to spend less time in the kitchen and more time mingling and spending time with your guests. That is the point of the holiday party after all – spending time with the ones you love.
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CONTACT US
Phone: (573) 346-6600
237 Mission Bay Blvd.
Camdenton, MO 65020
Camdenton, MO 65020
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