Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites: Your Holiday Entertaining Guide

Looking for a holiday entertaining guide to help you sail through the holiday season? Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites is filled with decorating ideas, delicious recipes, and hosting tips for welcoming family and friends into your home.

The Christmas holiday entertaining E-Book "Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites."

My favorite Christmas memories all revolve around the tree.

Decorating it.

Singing carols around it.

Ripping into presents beneath it on Christmas morning.

So it’s no surprise this book started with a whole lot of trees!

Woman smiling and decorating a Christmas tree.

The holiday entertaining E-Book Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites on a coffee table with a mug of coffee.

Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites: How It All Began

It all started with a party!

My friend Jen from Midwest Life and Style and I hosted a Holiday Open House at my home here in Lincoln. We opened the doors to old friends and new ones, and I decorated seven Christmas trees on the first floor.

It was so much fun preparing and decorating trees! It reminded me of my brick-and-mortar shop days when I would decorate the store into the wee hours of the morning.

This time I could decorate late at night and crash into bed just a few steps away!

A smiling woman hanging a blue ornament on a flocked Christmas tree.

The different Christmas trees ranged in color and style. But every last one was merry and bright!

A Christmas tree decorated for a holiday party.

A holiday table covered with a plaid tablecloth with stacked plates, linen napkins, and a centerpiece for entertaining.

A flocked Christmas tree decorated with blue and silver ornaments.

Of course, a holiday party needs food, so we planned the menu for months.

Guests grazed on hot and cold appetizers, holiday charcuterie, and lots of sweet treats. I think people liked my salted peanut bars because they were gone by the time I got to them!

A Christmas buffet with tiered trays of sweets and cookies.

One of my favorite part of the evening were the giveaways! The first 25 guests were given swag bags full of handmade ornaments and simmer pot kits.

Guests could enter drawings all night long, and the lucky winners went home with everything from tree ornaments to gift cards to holiday decor.

We had so much fun that by the end of the night, we were already reliving it!

Three women chatting a holiday Christmas party.

And we kept circling back to one thing: we wished we could share it with our online friends who couldn’t be there in person.

We couldn’t stop talking about it. How could we invite the rest of you, too?

Our answer was to take the open house, the trees, the food, and the hosting know-how, and put it all into a digital ebook called Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites.

After months of writing, designing, photographing, and gathering our favorite ideas, we have an 82-page holiday entertaining guide, and we can’t wait for you to see it!

The holiday entertaining E-Book "Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites"

A Little About Jen and Me

Jen and I met the way a lot of friends do these days…online. Then we discovered that we live in the same town!

Before long, our internet friendship became a real-life one. After more than 30 years in the classroom, I retired to blog full time. And around the same time, Jen traded her 9-to-5 as an event planner for a business of her own.

Since then, we’ve shared plenty of coffee, brainstorming sessions, and lots of stories and laughs. Now we get to add “authors” to the list!

Two women, dressed for holiday entertaining, and drinking champagne cocktails.

Cheers to the Challenge

I think we would both agree that this project challenged us both in the very best ways. And I could not ask for a better partner, co-author, and friend!

Two women clicking champagne glasses to celebrate the holidays.

SHOP OUR BOOK TWINKLING LIGHTS AND FESTIVE BITES

Table of Contents

What’s Inside Our Holiday Entertaining Guide

Here’s a peek at what you’ll find in all 82 pages.

Twinkling Lights: Holiday Decorating

We start with decorating for the holidays, naturally.

"Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites" holiday entertaining E-Book.

The first step is choosing a color palette, and we share tips for carrying it from room to room so your holiday decorations feel connected instead of chaotic.

(I know chaotic. Remember…seven trees!)

You’ll also find a step-by-step guide to decorating a Christmas tree from top to bottom.

Whether you love pulling out the same favorites every year or like to shake things up, it’s a great way to make your home feel festive.

Festive Bites

So many Christmas memories are tied to amazing food!

We’re sharing festive sips, savory appetizers, and decadent desserts…all favorite holiday recipes of ours.

The food section of the E-Book "Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites"

There’s a French 76, my favorite signature cocktail twist, a party pinecone cheese ball, my famous chocolate truffle recipe (If you know, you know!), and so many more.

You’ll find recipe ideas for everything from a holiday party or Christmas dinner to a cozy night in watching your favorite holiday movie. Every delicious recipe is meant to be made and shared!

A digital view of the E-Book Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites on a laptop.

Planning & Prep

Jen spent years as an event planner, so she knows hosting goes better with a plan.

And I have learned a thing or two about hosting over the years…the ups and the downs!

A printed copy of "Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites" E-Book.

In this chapter, we cover how to plan your menu (hello, fewer last-minute grocery store runs), get your home ready for guests, and build a hosting timeline so you’re not doing everything at once.

Planning and prepping section of the E-Book "Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites"

There’s also a bonus 8-Week Countdown to Christmas, with simple weekly tasks to give you a head start.

Trust us, this is a life-saver!

A holiday entertaining E-Book called Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites.

Are you in a party mood yet? Take a closer look at Twinkling Lights & Festive Bites and grab your copy HERE.

Stories of Christmas

As we were working on the book, we started sharing some of our Christmas stories with each other. They are too good not to share with you!

A woman hanging a red Christmas ornament on a tree.

So we take a little walk down memory lane and share some of our memories and traditions.

You might even catch photos of wee little Jen and wee little Missy with Santa!

How We Made It

We had enough ideas for another book or two (hint, hint…stay tuned!). But we wanted a guide you could use for many holiday seasons, so we were picky about what made the cut.

This is a digital E-Book, so you can save it to your computer, tablet, or phone. We added clickable links throughout, so finding even more recipes and decorating ideas is a breeze.

SHOP OUR BOOK TWINKLING LIGHTS AND FESTIVE BITES

One Last Peek Inside

Consider this your official invitation to the party!

Twinkling Lights and Festive Bites is our way of sharing everything we love about the holiday season: the food, the decorating, the planning, and the stories behind our family traditions.

Open it up when you need a recipe, a decorating idea, or a gentle push to start your Christmas prep.

A cup of coffee on a coffee table beside a holiday entertaining book.

Grab your copy HERE and let’s get this season started.

And if you have questions, drop them in the comments. I’m always happy to chat Christmas!

Merry Christmas, friends!

A Little About Me

Hi! I’m missy. So happy to meet you!

“Decorate with Joy! Live with Happiness”

I truly believe that your home should be a reflection of your personality, a space where you feel free to express yourself and create a sanctuary that feels uniquely yours.

I love creating mood boards, hunting down unique home décor treasures, tackling easy DIY projects, and gathering with family and friends. Homes are meant to be enjoyed, filled with laughter, and shared with the people you love!