It's a tradition

 Our family does not seem to have many

   but this is one tradition that has been happening every year since, well as far back as I can remember.  Even back to when my mother and aunt would do some holiday baking. 

Baking Night 

I used to invite the Sunday School girls over to bake and then when our own girls came along, they invited their friends to come.  And then they grew up and well the group shifts a bit, but there is always fun.

Tiff is now the great coordinator   She sends out the email invitation and makes a list of the cookies we plan to bake. I prepare some easy to eat supper and have aprons ready.   A few other things, but you can use your head about that.

This year.  Guess what?   The first responder said, sorry, better not come. And we soon realized that this year would be different.

This year....Our girls, their boys and....the little family next door.  Those little gals have been in our house ( and in our hearts ) so they are as much a part of our bubble as our own.

Let me add, our boy, comes sometimes..

Yes...that is him about 28 years ago

Back to 2020

       This year we added a few more  aprons in the smaller version

And this year, a day ahead, I baked shortbread ( family favorite, but it takes at least two hours, start to finish and we have only one oven ) and my cherry cake ( formerly called fruit cake, but I leave out the citrus and only give it to friends who love it... their names are on the bottom of my recipe....always room for one more, but no hate mail  please)

Also, Anita had prepared a batch of another family favorite, sour cream sugar cookie dough and soon ready for the little artists..

Here we go...   The bakers arrive and the fun begins   

Cousins  and 

They get the job of making the cookies in fun shapes 

First they look like this   

The art work begins 

with a little help from mom

Then they start looking like this 

                                                    

and this 

and oops 

Then comes the messy fun one..

Where did little one go ?    Well after she did a thorough job of washing her hands and washing the dolphins that reside in the bathroom stool,,,  she began another task...

Plenty of hard work going on 

The crew in color   

A little time out for ...football?

No football when someone is sick
Time to go to bed and here is some medicine so you won't die

These two tuned in to a Christmas movie





A couple things that have never happened before

Tiffany stepped on a nail
The nail was sticking out of Dad's shoe

Ok.   saving the best for last... a reward if you have scrolled this far...

 little one feels at home with a calculator in hand .....   listen up

And the annual group photo    

Never the same, but this year was so very special  

I live an exciting life...even in 2020