It’s almost New Year’s Eve! Although it’s a great night to go out and see all that your city has to offer, New Year’s Eve is also expensive and crowded. And who needs the hassle of getting a cab home? Sometimes it’s nice to just relax and enjoy your house on the last night of the year. Here are a few suggestions for what to do:

• Have a chili party: Chili is easy and versatile and pretty hard to mess up. You could assign someone to bring white bean chicken chili, another to bring classic chili con carne, another to bring black bean vegetarian chili, another to bring pork chili with salsa verde…you get the idea. For guests that aren’t big on cooking, it’s easy to bring chili accouterments like grated cheese, onions, cilantro, etc.
• Dessert and champagne party: Whether you are a master baker or just pick sweets up at the bakery, a dessert party will satisfy everyone’s sweet tooth on NYE! Don’t forget lots of champagne.
• Book club: If you have a literary bent, how about arranging a book club meeting for New Year’s? Bonus points if you design the menu around the book’s theme.
• Slumber party: Stay safe and stay off the roads! Invite your friends and their sleeping bags for a night of old-fashioned fun. Board games, movies, etc…the sky is the limit!

Have a safe and happy New Year’s Eve!

Image courtesy of EricMagnuson on Flickr.

20 Ways to Bring New Light to Your Old Jack-o’-Lantern
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Check out these creative pumpkin ideas…MLuxe especially likes to glitter pumpkins!

Last-Minute Halloween Ideas
MarthaStewart.com
Who else but Martha would have creative ideas for Halloween parties?

Pumpkin Carving with Power Tools
Charles & Hudson
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In one of the 30 states hard hit by the monster storm? We hope you are safe, warm and at home! With Punxsutawney Phil failing to see his shadow yesterday on Groundhog Day, we are supposedly due for an early (and much-needed) spring! If you’re going stir crazy, we’ve gathered up some links around the blogosphere to warm you up.

Remove Snow (Without The Backache) With The Wovel
Charles  and Hudson
“The Wovel has been independently tested by the University of Massachusetts and shown to perform at equal or better than your standard snowblower. Also, the Wovel has been shown to need no more force than you would normally exert walking, which is great for those of us unable to chuck that heavy wet stuff about like powdered sugar.”

Hunt, Gather and Host: Winter Picnic
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If you feel like some ambitious winter entertaining, this beautifully photographed post will give you some ideas!

All About Gas Fireplaces
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10 Things to Do Around the House When You’re Snowed In
Apartment Therapy
Stay busy around the house with these tips from Apartment Therapy.

Christmas traditions are numerous and varied: trimming the tree, singing carols and waiting for Santa to come. For many people, one of the most treasured and passed-down traditions are Christmas cookies. Christmas is only a few days away, but it is easy to whip up a few batches of your favorite seasonal treats.

Epicurious offers 25 recipes for Christmas cookies–plenty to choose from!

If you want to swap your delicious Christmas cookies, consider a cookie exchange. Better Home and Gardens has some helpful hints for a successful party:

• Don’t invite too many people — 8 to 12 is the right amount. Although you want to make sure there are lots of cookies to exchange, you don’t want your guests to have to make massive amounts of cookies.
• Make sure you know what sort of cookies everyone is bringing. You don’t want everyone to show up with peanut butter blossoms!
• As the host, you will need to provide beverages and maybe a few snacks–not too many, since you’ll be filling up on cookies!
• A cookie exchange is a great time to bring out all your fun holiday decorations and dishes.

Happy baking!

Image courtesy of  Key Lime Yummies Bakery on Flickr.