Post by Jessica R.

Once you’ve decided if you’re going to go with candid or posed pictures,  gone through the arduous fun task of taking the photos and picked out the perfect holiday Cards, you still have to address the envelopes and get them all mailed out.

Now, if you are super smart you will embrace and love the new Tiny Prints mailing service. You upload your mailing list and we send out the cards. We’ll even email your old college roommate and ask her for her mailing address first. Really.

But if you want to write cute little notes and hand address the cards, you might need more motivation than endless reruns of Ace of Cakes and Bridezilla.

That’s what the Holiday Card Party is for.

Gather up your best girl friends. Hire a sitter to entertain everyone’’s kids. Bake a couple dozen cookies and whip up some festive eggnog, a fancy frostini or some fun margaritas. Put out lots of bright colorful pens, glue sticks and anything else you might need to get those cards signed and sealed. Then see how many cards everyone can get through in a two or three hour stretch!

There’s no better motivation than fun drinks, great friends and a few child-free hours.

A few weeks ago, we featured adorable pop-up placemats from Hello Hannah, and now we’ve found the perfect personalized plates to match!

Alphabet Plates are an adorable way to turn snacktime into playtime. You can personalize them with food, sports equipment, monograms or my personal favorite—your child’s smiling face!

To show you just how cute they are, I made personalized plates for my fellow Tiny Talk blogger Lea and myself:

It literally took two minutes and I love how cute they are! I think they might make perfect gifts for all of my friends who have little ones to feed. What do you think?

One of the best parts about Thanksgiving is how mellow the holiday can be. I love having time off to relax with family and friends without worrying about wrapping presents, dangling from a ladder while hanging lights or dashing out to the store for last-minute stocking stuffers.

I do, however, love to take this time as an opportunity to create cute little crafts with the kids. What better way to adorn your Thanksgiving table than with some of these adorable Thanksgiving craft ideas?

Turkey Table Topper from Family Fun

Thanksgiving Wreath from Martha Stewart

Yarn Turkey Centerpiece from Parents.com

Turkey Place Markers from Family Fun