Looking for an easy afternoon of fun with your nieces and nephews this holiday season?  Baking up a batch (or several batches) of festive cookies is quite easy to put together and will make memories that last a lifetime.

First, when planning your cookie baking, take into account the age of the kids who will be attending to determine how much actual baking will be done. If your small nieces and nephews will be there, having the cookies prepared beforehand and plan to simply have them decorate the cookies. Grade school children can handle rolling out the chilled dough, cutting them into shapes with cookie cutters, doing another activity while they bake and cool, and then decorating. Tweens and teens will appreciate taking on the challenge of making the cookies themselves from start to finish.

To throw a great holiday cookie party, try these ideas:

If you want to create an official invitation, cut out holiday shapes using colorful construction paper with your cookie cutters - gingerbread men work perfectly! Place all of the party information onto the invitation. Attach a candy cane to the invite if hand-delivering.

The heart of this party will take place in the kitchen and dining area. Have enough seats available for the children to sit down and decorate. Line the kitchen table with wrapping paper for a festive feel.  Providing your nieces and nephews with red aprons and Santa hats would add to the fun of the afternoon and can be taken home as a goody.  And of course, play those holiday carols in the background!

At each seat, set out plates where your nieces and nephews will decorate their cookies. In the center of the table, place all of the frosting tubes, sprinkles, and candies for the kids to use to decorate. Again, this type of set-up is best for small kids who will only be decorating. The older kids will most likely be spending a good amount of time in the kitchen cutting out the dough with the cookie cutters and placing them on the baking tray or actually making the cookies from scratch.

During the time while the cookies are baking or some additional activities include:

Hold a taste test. Place all of the ingredients that are needed to make cookies and place them into individual bowls. Have your nieces and nephews taste or observe the different ingredients and guess which is which.

Have a spice taste test. Place different spices that are used in holiday baking into small spice bowls and have the kids taste each one to determine the spice.

Have a cocoa station. Set-up  hot chocolate, whipped cream, candy cane sticks, and chocolate shavings for the kids to create a sweet treat.

Find new recipes. Have your recipe books out for your nieces and nephews to browse, as well as 3×5 cards and pens. The kids can copy a recipe or two that they would like to try during the season. They can take these cards home as well.

Re-use the cookie cutters for more holiday fun.  After the cookie cutters have been used, wash them up, and have the kids use them to draw festive pictures, to make Play Dough shapes, etc.

When the cookies have been baked and decorated, wrap them in red Saran Wrap for the kids to take home, along with their recipe cards, aprons, hats, etc.

This is an easy party to put together, even at the last minute. If you find that you are watching some of your nieces and nephews one afternoon as a favor while their parents get their shopping done, you certainly can get out an easy cookie recipe, assemble the ingredients, bake a batch, and have the kids decorate. No need for goodies, besides sending them home with some cookies. They will love it. This gathering can be as fancy or as simple as you make it.

Happy holiday baking!