Hey, Moms! Let’s plan a playdate… for US! ;)

If you’ve visited the blog recently, then you might already know that I’ve partnered with Minute Maid and their #doingood campaign this holiday season to encourage the spreading of JOY to parents in particular. You know – that group of people that looks EXTRA-exhausted this time of year… or is that just my husband and me? ;)

As the mom of two little girls, this project has hit close to home, and I’ve enjoyed dreaming up creative ways to make other parents happy (like this and this) by thinking about the common threads that we all experience in parenting. Speaking of which, please watch the video at the end of this post for a heart-warming explanation of the idea behind #doingood!

So, for my third and final post for this project, I wanted to do something extra FUN… and decided it was high time for a MOMS “playdate” too! My kids are young, so the term “playdate” is still a thing in my house, but this one really applies to moms with kids of ALL ages…

The idea is simple… let’s create an excuse to get together with other moms, chat about life, realize we’re not alone when it comes to this whole parenting thing, share advice and ideas, crack up at each others’ very familiar sounding stories, etc. This kind of thing is SO GOOD for the soul!

Mama Bear Brunch Theme + Free Printables

You don’t have to get super fancy with things for this playdate, of course, but if you feel like getting creative and giving your get-together a holiday vibe, here’s my “Mama Bear” Holiday Brunch for inspiration! I see moms running around in “Mama Bear” shirts a lot lately, and thought it would be fun to give this concept a polar bear twist for the holidays.

I kept the details pretty simple and inexpensive with paper plates and napkins, simple breakfast foods, and high-contrast black and white printables. (Scroll down for link to download all of the printables for FREE!)

I wanted the focal element on the table to be a set of printable placemats* with encouraging words. There are 2 different styles, and they’re designed in a talk bubble shape for obvious reasons. :) Let’s CHAT!

I also designed mama bear Party Flags for the straws and centerpiece tree topper. If you want to host your “playdate” later in the day, these little flags work great as cupcake toppers too!

An 8×10 Treat Sign was an easy way to “theme up” the food and drink area, which consisted of spinach-egg-feta wraps, donuts, fruit salad, and cranberry-orange muffins. Everything except for the muffins was store-bought to keep things easy! I set out Minute Maid Orange Juice (which has a #doingood message on the side of the carton) and Minute Maid Light Lemonade for the drinks.

I couldn’t resist hanging this “Live a Little Wild” ornament on the donut tray to add a little cheeky humor…permission to indulge without guilt is granted! ;)

Printable decorative hearts were used to embellish the chair backs and serving dishes.

I cut the egg wraps in half to make them go further… and this way the guests have more room for a donut too. LOL

This centerpiece was quick to put together and consists of a polar bear figure, a small cranberry tree, and a flannel-check ornament. A painted mason jar is placed under the tree for extra height. I also used sparkly craft poms and bakers twine for added detail.

*Printing tip: You can also download the placemats as an 18×24″ PDF with 2-up on sheet, then print them at a local print shop as engineering prints, which are very inexpensive. Since I don’t have an oversize printer at home myself, I did this and only spent .89 cents per placemat!

Mama Bear Holiday Gift Idea

If you love the “Mama Bear” concept for the holidays but can’t host a get-together, here’s another idea for a themed #doingood gift: pair a polar bear ornament with an edible treat (like holiday muffins or “bear claw” pastries!), and write a little note on the back of these free printable Mama Bear Gift Tags.

For an extra thoughtful touch, include a bottle of your favorite Minute Maid beverage with this gift! You can even look for the ones that already have the #doingood message on the container, then fill in the blanks to personalize the message for the recipient.

Speaking of messages, another quick and easy way to tell someone they are #doingood is with Minute Maid’s Letter Maker. Sometimes heartfelt words are the greatest gift you can give a parent (or someone special!).

#doingood Holiday Contest + Video

I hope you’re able to use these ideas and printables to spread holiday joy to some of your fellow “Mama Bears”! And speaking of holiday joy, don’t forget to enter the $500 holiday contest that I’m currently hosting, which ends on Thursday, December 8, 2016.

Last but not least, here’s that heart-warming #doingood video that I mentioned earlier!

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post for Minute Maid. Thank you so much for supporting the companies that make it possible for me to keep the creative content coming your way!