Gingerbread People and the Nativity

Today Hanna and I decided to make gingerbread people. We did this because we are not going to make gingerbread houses which the kids love to do every year but which I did not want to do this year. I told Hanna that when I was a child, my Mom would make gingerbread cookies with a hole in the head so that we could thread a ribbon in them and hang them on the tree. I always loved decorating the gingerbread men then and we also got to eat them after Christmas. This year we decorated boys and girls (we almost did all girls but decided not to discriminate after all). I made one called "going to church boy" and told Chandler it was him. Can you find it? Also, we figured out how to turn stars into snowflakes. Most of my girls like to help with things like this but Hanna is my most faithful partner. She is very clever and creative as well as helpful and capable. Tonight we decided to do our nativity play because we have other plans for Christmas Eve. Chandler has to be Joseph every year but he is mostly a good sport, even though the costume doesn't fit very well. Andria won for the part of Mary and Danica consoled Samantha by telling her it was only 368 days until next Christmas.

Here we have a shepherd and a couple of wise men.

A sheep and Mary

A shining angel with braces removed just today! You don't get happier than that.

I used to get annoyed when everyone goofed around during the nativity play but I have mellowed in my old age. So if our sheep has to baaa during the angel's announcement it's ok.

And if Joseph wants to look like a gangster, oh well. See how I have matured? After the pageant, Zan thought it should be time to open presents. Luckily, there were some for her and Sam that were from Maranda and Andria that were regifted. We let them open those presents (ponies) and they were happy. Dan mocked me by announcing our new tradition of letting the youngest children open presents any time they want. Ha ha ha.

Note: As I type this, I can hear Chandler reading stories to Zanya and doing all the voices. Imagine a huge smile on my face :)