We had our family Thanksgiving on Sunday evening and my mom’s house was fully decked out for Christmas. She makes me look like the most extreme form of a minimalist because every nook and cranny in her home is pure holiday magic! On her kitchen counter, she had a hot chocolate bar that I was quite intrigued by. Maxi loved it for making hot cocoa and it looked so cozy, a holiday spin on a traditional coffee bar.

On Monday, I decided a Homegoods trip was in order as I needed to recreate that magic for Maxi at home! I touched on this a bit on stories, but I’ve always kept treats out. I want my home to feel as warm as a Nancy Meyers’ film. Whether I have a cookie jar on the counter or a cake stand with muffins, I’ve never wanted desserts {or even tv} to be forbidden. This may be the totally incorrect parenting philosophy, but it is what my mom did with us, and I hardly touched desserts until I was pregnant with Maxi. #ThanksHormones. With Maxi, if something is out she just doesn’t think it is a big deal. She’ll ask to bake cookies, I agree, and once they are out of the oven she forgets about them. We decorated hot chocolate for these photos and she didn’t even drink it, she offered it to me. Half the time I think desserts are just interesting for kids to play with/look at. Your philosophy on treats around the home may be different, and that is wonderful, but in case you leave things out I wanted to share how I created this hot chocolate bar for Christmas. Maxi may leave it be, but I’ve had fun digging into it at night while I watch Christmas movies. 😉

First off, you can get all of this from Homegoods- minus the gingerbread houses which I linked. From the tray to the snowman jars, I purchased it all at Homegoods. However, most of this was also online so I’ve linked below. The tray was $20 at Homegoods, but online options are a bit pricier.

Grab a cake stand, 3-tiered tray, or whatever serving platter you like. You could also just do this on your kitchen counter without anything tiered. On the top, I added the hot chocolate spoons. You can get these in pretty packaging at William-Sonoma- but they are pricy! I got mine from Homegoods {Target also has} and then instead of the twist tie on them, I added ribbon from Amazon that I linked. It dresses it up a bit! On the second tier, I have marshmallows, peppermint candies, spoons, and a gingerbread salt shaker that I filled with cinnamon. Then, on the bottom, add your favorite Christmas mugs! I also added an apothecary jar with colorful marshmallows, which is a fun addition.

You could also do this with coffee, tea- you name it! Ribbons and candy canes add a festive touch to something you already use in your kitchen. I’d love to see if you create something like this in your home, so be sure to tag me on Instagram!