I look forward to book club Thursday’s every month.  But I think the Christmas Party is my very favorite book club Thursday, and we try our best to do it right!

Our recipe for The Perfect Book Club Christmas Party:

Food & Drinks::
Fancy cheese and cracker platter
sweet and salty cheese dip
Apple carmel tart
fruit kabobs
trader Joe’s chocolate covered almonds
chocolate-chocolate brownies
homemade hot chocolate
sparkling fruit punch
pomosas (pomegranate mimosas!)

Games::

White Elephant Book Swap:
Each member brought a used copy of their favorite book wrapped but not labeled. (Requirement: not a book our club has read.) Once they arrived I had them fill out a card with 3 descriptive words or phrases about that book. Then we played your traditional White Elephant game. Everyone picked a number and the choosing and swapping and swapping and swapping began!!

Telephone Picitonary:
This is our traditional Christmas party book club game, playing it every December except one. (What?! were we thinking?) I hole punched index cards in a corner and used binder rings to hold them together. One set of cards per person, each set containing the number of cards as number of people playing. On the first card everyone writes a phrase. (We say anything goes, but you could choose a theme: song titles/lyrics, Christmas, book titles or quotes, the possibilities are endless!) Once everyone writes a phrase you pass your set of cards to the left. Now you read the phrase on top, flip to card 2 and draw, to the best or you ability, the phrase you just read. Then we continues on, passing to the left, look at the drawing, flip to card three, and now write out what you saw in the drawing. And it keeps going until you get your set back… pass, write, pass, draw, pass write… In the end, we all share our set of cards with the group. It’s obviously the last drawing is not what you started with and is hilarious to see the when, why, and how things got so twisted and turned in the short trip around the circle.

(Note: this is a fabulous game for baby or wedding showers instead of the “traditional games” and a HOOT if you play it at family functions (like your Christmas get-together, when you have everyone from Grandpa Fred to your younger niece or nephew! I speak from experience on all counts here! Tears of laugher.every.time.)

Our awesome members:
It wouldn’t be a party without all of you lovely ladies!! Thank you for always bringing your smiling faces and unique thoughts and discussion to “the table.” (And little Lucy, our book club baby in attendance! Note: we LOVE it when babies can join us, and next year we might get the chance to see MANY little ones in attendance! Four members are currently expecting!!)

A little something to take home:
Last year I crafted mini book club notebooks. This year I went with something to pamper. I met Karen at a conference last year and she has an awesome little e-book: Simple Scrubs to Make and Give. I made 3 varieties to pamper the feet of all these lovely ladies in attendance.

And new this year,as a treat to us, we were sponsored by a friend of many of ours and his company. (Charter Advisory Corporation) As a gift we received a copy of January’s book by Charles Dickens: The Old Curiosity Shop!! Many members use the financial planning services of Randy. He shared for about 5 minutes about what it is he does and how he can help anyone, no matter where you are financially.

General fellowship/chatting/visiting, of course:
We plan plenty of time in the evening for just talking! You can’t have a party with ladies and not catch up with everyone!! One topic we discussed, since it WAS book club Thursday, was our reading goals. Last year many of us set reading goals for 2012. (Check back with what you wrote, did you meet your goals?!) This year Sheila is encouraging goal setting on her blog The Deliberate Reader for our 2013 Reading Goals. What will YOU be reading next year?

Thank you Sarah for being such a fantastic host, you have a beautiful home!
I’m so excited for what 2013 has to offer and for all the future book club Thursdays!
See you all next month, January 10th at 7:00pm at Panaradise at Hamilton Town Center as we discuss The Old Curiosity Shop