My holiday party was an awesome success! All my old high school friends showed up, and some of my friend’s friends from college showed up. My friend Ariel, who loves to cook and make awesome drinks, came prepared. She bought two bottles of red wine and all the ingredients to make this hot drink called Gluehwein, and brought spiked hot apple cider. Gluehwein is a German/Austrian holiday drink that is served warm as an after ski drink. She got the recipe from allrecipes.com here. Earlier, I also purchased a bottle of Atmosphere extra brut sparkling rose and two bottles of Nicolas Feuillatte champagne. Ariel also brought tons of dumplings and even a pie!

Because it’s so close to Christmas, some people gave out and got presents. I got Ariel a Sephora lip set, Amanda a Louboutin nail polish, Grace a Kate Spade bangle, Catherine Kate Spade earrings, Remy a good bottle of bourbon, and I got Sonya two gift cards and chocolate because I didn’t realize she was coming until last minute. It was great to give out gifts and see everyone loving what I got them, but it was even better to get some gifts too! Remy got me a great bottle of French rose, and Ariel brought back some souvenirs from her trip around the world she took recently. She went to Japan and got me this really cool eyeliner that has three mini tips that act like a calligraphy pen to create a wonderful bold cat eye! She also got me some green Kit Kats that look really awesome, and a collapsible light reflector that I will now use every time I take blog pictures. I’m so thankful to have such great friends who know me so well.