Cookies!

Today officially starts Christmas season—I insist on waiting until December 1st to call it that.  November is Thanksgiving—December is Christmas.  I realize I’m in the minority when most of the world sees Black Friday as the official start of Christmas but I like to give Thanksgiving it’s due.  I don’t go Christmas shopping on Black Friday and I don’t do Cyber Monday either.  Maybe I should.  But I’m not thinking about Christmas until December.  So here it is!  Another Christmas!  With Christmas comes COOKIES!  This is where I get ridiculous.  Every year it’s more and more varieties.  My goal is always 25—bake one batch per day.  But I’ve never made it there.  Last year I got to 23 I think.  But this year!  This is MY YEAR!  I’m going to make it!

There are always standards—chocolate chip, sugar cookies.  But over the years, we’ve developed some new favorites like coffeehouse flats and orange snowballs.  Every year we try new ones and bring back old favorites.  It’s never the same 25 each year but some of them have been made often enough that I don’t need  recipe anymore and some we’ve tried and adjusted to make our own.

Last weekend I stocked up on all of the supplies—10 pounds of sugar, 5 pounds of butter, 3 dozen eggs and 50—that’s right 50!—pounds of flour.  Ok, so 50 pounds was an accident.  I meant to get 25 but let’s be honest—it won’t go to waste!

The girls are all in on baking.  In fact, they’re much more helpful than they ever were in years past.  Iris is an ace at egg cracking and measuring.  Ivy still needs some work but she hasn’t been as dedicated as Iris.  Neither of them are ok pulling things out or putting them in the oven but I don’t mind taking that role.  They can follow a recipe and usually get the measurements right.  Fractions are tough!

Nick is on a long trip so we have a big day of baking ahead of us.  Baking and Christmas movie watching and fundraising fold and stuff!  That’s the holiday season in our house!

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