Advent Days 4 and 5: Make Christmas cookies, put lights in the front yard

I had Sunday slotted for making Christmas cookies. I knew that I needed to make a lot of cookies well in advance of Cookie Day because last year when I made four dozen Christmas cookies the day before? Oh hell no, I am not doing that again. I had this big idea to make the cookies in advance, maybe a few batches at a time and freeze them.

Except, as it turns out, making rolled out cookies is not my favorite thing to do in the kitchen and I was reallllly dreading it. It's just so much WORK. We did it anyway, (after I sent Chris to the store for sugar) and I'll probably have to make two more batches but at least one is out of the way. I was supposed to start making these dumb cookies in November and now it's already December 6 (SIX!) so I'll probably be making another round before the week is out.

Making the cookies with Claire went just fine. She enjoys sitting on the counter and helping measure and pour and dump. She does remarkably well with the baking powder and leveling it on the little shelf in the can. She did end up letting an egg roll into Charlotte's high chair (while Charlotte was in the chair) and it cracked (but didn't actually break open) and that was the only casualty of Claire Helping In The Kitchen, which is honestly pretty good for her.

I wish I had more to tell you about making cookies or some metaphor or a Magical Mother Daughter Moment but it was just cookies and we had fun and they were delicious. (This is why I don't blog every day. Sometimes, life is just BORING.) I froze most of them and we decorated six and ate them almost immediately.

This afternoon a post goes up about my favorite sugar cookie recipe over at Food Lush. (Vanilla Almond Sugar Cookies! Yum!) Highly recommend you try that one this year.

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Monday's activity was "Put lights in the front yard with Daddy." But then it rained all day and it was gross so, uh, we didn't do that. We'll roll that one into today or tomorrow, weather permitting.

Comments

[HereWeGoAJen]

I hate making rolled cookies too, but I love eating them. If I were rich, there is this woman I know who has a cookie business and makes fabulous cookies and I would buy a bunch of plain sugar cookies from her and we'd decorate them. And it would be all the fun and delicious parts of sugar cookie decorating, but none of the stupid rolling and cutting and re-rolling.

[Jessica]

You know I'm in for anything almond flavored. Plus, now I actually HAVE almond so I won't get halfway through the recipe and realize it will have to be almond-less.

[megan]

I am so jealous that your Clare is helpful. Mine willfully took the sprinkles and threw them all over the kitchen. And then they got into the den where they were ground into the carpet. Also, neither of us is very good at deocrating cookies. Next year - chocolate chip! Those I am good at.

[Life of a Doctor's Wife]

The cookies look great and Clair is so cute with the helping!

[K]

Oh my gosh...I want cookies now.

[Mel]

I am dying to make the vanilla almond cookies but thinking to wait until next year bc of, you know, the butter part. If I am going to all the trouble to make them, I better dang well be able to eat them.

Your advent activities are marvelous. JUST MARVELOUS. I am green with creativity envy.