also... we had 2 parties in the last 4 days.

Mia turned 3 and we had an open house for all of our lovely church family.  6 kids at the birthday, I have no idea how many at the church party, but both parties were a lot of fun and I had a good time making most of the food!

The Christmas party...


I baked alll yesterday morning and made most of the items on the table... gingerbread cookies, sugar cookies, blondies, cheese straws, pita chips, hummus, guacamole, and there was also brie en croute that isn't pictured.

The birthday party was a make-your-own pizza party so I made dough in the bread machine and the kids put together their individual pizzas.

and the "cake" was really a sugar cookie topped with Nutella, yellow candy melts for cheese, and then gummi bears, marshmallows, and sprinkles for toppings.

budget wise I did well for the birthday party, mostly because our theme wasn't typical "birthday" so the supplies we needed were cheaper.  I had all the ingredients for the dough and I didn't need too many extras.  Kids got water or juice to drink.  We did order a couple pizzas for the grown ups but that was a luxury!

The Christmas party cost a good deal more, but I think it was worth it!