Cookie Decorating with Friends 2013

Oh, I LOVE traditions!  Years ago Deborah and I thought it would be fun to get our kids together (back then it was just one each that could even participate) for some Christmas cookie decorating.  We've now don't it for three years, so I think we can say it's a full-fledged tradition.  I just love starting traditions that the kids (and adults alike) can look forward to.  Deborah is a dear friend, a mom and woman I revere and another healthy-minded baker, so she has been the perfect collaborator for these cookie decorating dates.  This year Tavin and I made the sugar cookie dough and cut out the shapes (in the past it's been Koen and I,  but he's so busy with school these days!).  This year I found a new recipe that also works well with whole wheat flour, in case you are interested.  Easy to roll out, soft and tasty after being baked (note I added a 1 1/2 tsp. of vanilla to improve taste).  Tavin was a great helper.  He especially liked cutting out the shapes with Mommy.

Besides being photographer, Doug kept Penn busy in the living room with a marble works creation.  Penn was so proud of himself that he could be a part of this big boy toy structure.  Tavin had to join in the fun after hearing all the happy squeals Penn was making.

Koen got home from school a little before 4pm and our friends arrived shortly after to start decorating the cookies!  The kids played for about 15 minutes upstairs while Deborah and I set up and then we called them down to their workstation.  They were on the job!

The bigger kids got a lot more detailed this year.  Checkout Koen's thoughtful design.

Hmmmm, I wonder where he got it from?  Turns out Doug's a little into cookie-decorating.  We had to keep reminding him to go help keep and eye on Penn as he was drawn to the cookies like a moth to a flame.

Here's a few favorites that my boys did.  Doug's is the out of control Christmas tree with a star cookie bonded to its top with frosting.  Koen's is the gingerbread man and Tav's is the green and red snowman.

The kids eventually tired of the decorating and we adults did some and then we cleaned up that mess and set them up with some ginger cookies to roll, then roll in sugar and then we baked them fresh.  I didn't get pictures of this part, but it was a new experiment to do two kinds of cookies in one night, but it worked well, just a little too much going on to capture it all on camera!  After we finished up the second round it was time to eat.  Deborah had brought a leftover stew she made (she is a fantastic cook) and we had a salad.  It was a simple, warm meal and it was lovely to share it with these friends.  The kids were itching to get back to playing, but it was still nice to all be around the table at least for a little while.  Well, we now all have way too many cookies, so if you are visiting the Melder house in the next week or so, come prepared for a Christmas cookie snack!  Thanks Deborah for helping it all come together for another year of cookie-making fun.  I loved it and so did the kids!  Merry Christmas!