One of my favorite parts of the holidays is the baking and every year I really enjoy putting together a cookie party for the kids in the family. Not only is it a great for visiting and enjoying some quality time but you end up with some adorably decorated cookies straight from sweet little hands.

While a cookie party doesn’t require a ton of planning, keeping a few things in mind will help it go off a lot smoother and ensure everyone has a great time, even your littlest helpers.

Host the Perfect Cookie Party

• Keep it on the smaller side-Too many kids and it will become chaos. Of course, it depends on the space in your house but I would recommend keeping it under 10 kids. If you keep your numbers lower you can give each child a little more one on one attention and room to move. Be sure you have plenty of grown-up helpers on hand to help with the decorating.

• Go with paper- Make it easy on yourself and simplify cleaning time by stocking up on paper plates, napkins, and cups. This will keep dishes to a minimum and stress at bay. Disposable containers  or tins for the kids to bring home their cookies should also be on the list.

• Include kid-sized tools– Be sure and have some fun kid-sized tools for them to use, they also make a great take home party favor that everyone will love too. Little aprons, spatulas, whisks, and measuring spoons are not only adorable but they are much easier for little hands to use.
• Precook most of your cookies- I like to mix, bake, and cool most of the cookies ahead of time for the party so they are ready to decorate. I do let the kids use cookie cutters to cut out a few trayfuls of sugar cookies so they feel they are part of the whole process.

• Have lots of cookie decorations- Make plenty of icing (or use store bought) set out a wide variety of sprinkles,  decorator gel, and other decorations for the cookies and let them go crazy with their cookie creations. Make sure you get in on the fun too!

• Serve refreshments- A little something to soak up all the cookies that have been sampled is a very important part to a cookie party!

Some non-sweet snacks and water are perfect.  Fresh veggies, crackers, cheese, fruit like grapes and apple slices will help offset all the sugar.

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Today, beverages account for 47% of added sugars in the US American Diet and more than 13% of calories consumed per day. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that the primary beverage consumed be either calorie-free – like water – or should contribute beneficial nutrients such as fat-free and low-fat milk and 100% juice. Replacing a single 12-ounce, 140 calorie sugar sweetened beverage with water each day for a year can cut more than 50,000 calories from one’s diet.

Make NESTLÉ® PURE LIFE® “Share-A-Smile™” Winter Edition 8oz bottles a part of your holiday celebrations!

Show us how you use celebrate the winter season and hydrate along the way with the Nestlé® Pure Life® limited edition “Share-A-Smile™” Winter Bottles with the hashtag #HolidayHowTo and #NestleWinterWater and by tagging @nestlepurelifeusa.

Thank you to Nestle® Pure Life® for sponsoring this blog post. All opinions are my own.

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