Last night we kicked off the holidays in style with our holiday party. We have been planning this party for several weeks and it’s hard to believe how fast it came and went. Alex and I had so much fun both at the party and preparing to host it. The evening went very smoothly and we were surprised how well we were able to estimate food and beverage quantities. We made a solid effort to try to chat with all of our guests and I think we were able to manage that and keeping everyone’s glasses relatively full. We’re hopeful this will be the first of many annual holiday parties! I’ll let the photos tell the story.
![{Our spread included a cheese board, gougeres, stuffed mushrooms, Christmas pinwheels, white bean dip crostinis, veggies and mushroom/onion tartlettes, along with a whole boat load of cookies!}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/IMG_0455-1024x768.jpg)
![{Alex was in charge of drinks. We had a big batch of Maple Bourbon Splash and another dispenser with Cranberry Lime Spritzer, along with red wine, beer, homemade Irish cream and egg nog.}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/20141221_031254749_iOS-1024x768.jpg)
![{Carrie's cookies were the star of the evening! They were placed next to our holiday photo props.}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/IMG_0453-1024x768.jpg)
![{Alex and I kicked off the photos with our goofy props.}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/20141221_064706624_iOS-e1419216809755-1024x768.jpg)
![{Carrie & Patrick joined in the fun.}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/20141221_082100092_iOS-e1419216789138-768x1024.jpg)
![{Ali & Tyler snuck a kiss under the mistletoe!}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/20141221_061423317_iOS-768x1024.jpg)
![{So thankful for the help of these two!}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/IMG_0452-1024x768.jpg)
![{The boys were holding down the fort before everyone started to arrive.}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/IMG_0454-1024x768.jpg)
![{Fun in the kitchen.}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/IMG_0451-1024x768.jpg)
![{Dave and Ryan enjoying some vino}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/IMG_0450-1024x768.jpg)
![{The crowd in the living room.}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/IMG_0447-1024x768.jpg)
![{Stopping for a quick pose.}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/IMG_0448-1024x768.jpg)
![{Trish and Mary}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/IMG_0449-1024x768.jpg)
![{Jamie and Alex getting silly.}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/20141221_081813360_iOS-e1419216666118-768x1024.jpg)
![{Jackson had a little too much fun at the party! He was passed out all day Sunday.}](http://keepingupwiththeallens.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/20141221_175638382_iOS-e1419216683190-768x1024.jpg)
We can’t wait for the second annual holiday party next year!