Holiday Parties

We spent this holiday season spending time with friends and family. One of my favorite things this time of year is the reminder to spend time with the people you love. 

Johnson Family Jingle and Mingle

My aunt Ardis is keeping this party alive. I am so glad that she is because one of my memories of the Christmas season growing up is attending this party. This is a family Christmas party for my grandma Pat's side of the family. At this party, I see a lot of great-aunts and great-uncles as well as distant cousins we do not see often. This party was on the day we got home from Australia. After the long flight Alison and I were tired. We stopped by, ate some soup, and said hello before heading home and crashing. 

5th Annual Accounting Friends Holiday Party 

We kept our accounting friends' holiday party simple this year. We got together on a Saturday morning a few weeks before Christmas. Everyone brought breakfast food to share. The adults ate food and chatted while the kids played downstairs (so grateful we finished our basement this year). This has always been a special group of our friends and while the people who can make the party year to year change we have been able to keep the core group together. It feels pretty remarkable that we stayed close 5 years after we all graduated. I hope this party will continue for many years to come. 

Gingerbread House Party

Kristin and Dan hold a Christmas party each year where they decorate gingerbread houses. This year Alison requested an invitation. We attended the party along with some of Kristin and Dan's friends. We all ate dinner and then the kids decorated their gingerbread houses. Alison helped Skylee decorate her gingerbread house. Then the adults took a turn designing and decorating their own. It is a fun holiday tradition.

The house Alison and I decorated

Hosting a Work Party

Alison volunteered to host a party for some of her peers at work. We held the party at our house - it was nice and cozy. We actually borrowed a folding table and set it up in an L shape with our normal dining table to create space for all 10 guests. Alison put together the menu - chicken cordon bleu, a Christmas green salad, fruit, roasted potatoes, and dinner rolls. For dessert, I made a multi-layer chocolate peppermint cake from scratch. I am pretty proud of this dessert - it was a hit. One of Alison's friends from work brought drinks. It was a very nice meal and I enjoyed getting to know some of Alison's coworkers. I have heard a lot about them and it was nice to put a face to a name.