New Year's Eve Stamping Party

For the last 8 years, my sister and I have had a New Year's Eve stamping party and this year was no exception. The first couple of years there were 5 of us; we dropped to 4 but this year we were back up to 5 (me, Sue, Barb, Sandy and Marla). We usually start early afternoon on New Year's Eve and continue through New Year's Day. We stamp, laugh, eat, stamp some more, eat some more, watch the "ball" drop at midnight, and stamp and laugh some more. We have a regular pajama party, while playing with stamps, ink, paper, glitter or anything else we can get our hands on.

Tradition dictates that we start off by making calendars. We first made calendars that fit in the 3x5 acrylic frames but a couple of years ago, we moved to the 4x6 frames (more stamping space!). It's amazing how 5 people can all be working with the same calendar, yet the end results all look so different. I'm going to start off each month with a copy of mine. (I need to figure out how to get better photographs of my cards.)

After calendars, everyone starts working on whatever cards they might need for the coming year. Sue and I always have to work on cards for our Mom as her birthday is the 6th. We also play with new products (Cuttlebug was a huge hit) or work on other projects. There is always a flurry of activity and conversation. We all have very different styles and we always show off what we've completed.

There's always plenty of food around; everyone contributes. Snacks and diet pop are a given. We try to have something substantial (pizza or meat and cheese tray or this year's favorite, mac and cheese) for supper. And, of course, the evening wouldn't be complete without an assortment of sweets.

Breakfast has really become a brunch. We have a wonderful egg/bread/ham/cheese casserole (recipe actually calls it an "egg souffle"), along with fruit, OJ and/or coffee and sweet rolls. Gives us all the energy we need for another round of stamping.

We tend to start packing things up about 4:00 p.m. After several trips out to cars, our guests head home, and Sue and I collapse tired but content.

It's a wonderful way to start off the new year... doing something you love in the company of good friends.