*All things A Ro: Dirty Santa Stinks

First let me apologize for my absence from my blog...you will soon realize why.

In a recent post I mentioned how much I disliked cookie exchange parties. Now I realize that nothing sounds better, in theory, than standing around with your friends and eating 240 dozen cookies and then taking a huge tray home to torture you the rest of the month or hours depending on the level of your will power. But we don't live our lives "in theory" now do we and a dozen cookies later feeling like you want to throw up and then take a nap makes your "in theory" about cookie parties less appealing.

However one of my most favorite people invited me to a cookie party less than 24 hours after my post, and I decided to go.

So I read my invitation carefully. It said that I needed to bring 8 dozen cookies and a $40 Dirty Santa gift. As I was wondering what to make I found out from a very good source (my hostess's daughter who is a student of mine) that there was going to be judging going on AND that the winner would win, among other things, a tiara.

Well now it is on...you tell a diva that she has the potential of winning a tiara and you better watch out.

So I pulled out the big guns...albeit guns that take a tremendous amount of time and effort...but the big guns none the less.

Yes...you guessed it...I made 96 reindeer cake pops (see you must now forgive my blog hiatus...it was for a good cause...a tiara.)

Well it worked this diva took home the prize...I won Best in Show...the top prize. I won the Cookie with the Best Holiday Spirit...otherwise known as Queen of the Cookies. I got my tiara.

One of my biggest problem with the entire evening was what kind of Dirty Santa gift to bring. These ladies are the type of people who have everything. So I went to Brighton and bought a very cute bracelet.

I cannot tell you how excited I was to be going to a Dirty Santa exchange with these ladies. I couldn't wait to bring home my gift, cause I knew it was going to be good.

So I watched people open beautiful jewelry, cashmere scarves, Crate and Barrel boxes with awesome hostessware and baking dishes. I saw Sephora make-up and perfume and Coach bags.

So when it was my turn I couldn't wait to tear into my gift. I picked the prettiest gift under the tree. I opened it up...and to my dismay...I found myself staring at...

...a book...I got a hardbound copy of The Hobbit.

Now I know what you are thinking. That is a great intellectual gift, which shows class and refinement. A really classic book that I should have been excited to have.

But you fail to realize that I am the kind of person who makes 96 cake pops so that she can win a tiara. Class and refinement are not in my vocabulary.

Of course no one stole my gift probably because the only one with class and refinement at the party was the person who brought the book. So I went home with my Hobbit book in hand, sad to say, trying to figure out where she bought it so I could return it.

However, the good news is I got my tiara and my pin that says Queen of the Cookies: