The Gingerbread House or Cookie Love, Part 2

The Boy was asking and asking to make a gingerbread house this year.  How could I say no?  Last year was the first year in about ten that I did not make one, since I was about seventeen months pregnant and not very willing to stand in the kitchen any longer than say…two minutes.  This year, he actually showed interest in helping, which is an enormous change.  Usually he is only interested in the eating of the house.  Not willing to take any chances with his willingness to help, I had the house constructed and ready to go.  The dough mixing, cutting, baking, and assembling all happened without his help.  Well actually, I did make the dough with him under my feet begging me for flour to eat.  Does that count?  And why does he like to eat flour?!

Anyway, I had the whole thing ready for him and he had a great time decorating it.  It seemed that darn icing kept getting all over his hands.  How unfortunate to have to lick it off!  We decorated the house with candies from the health food store because I will admit that regular candies give me the heebie-jeebies with all of the food colorings in them and whatnot.  It was his idea to put the gummi bear on the front door.  I love its jaunty position.

Our tradition is that we decorate the house on Christmas Eve and he is allowed to eat it (no, not all of it) on Christmas Day.  He ate a big hunk of the roof with all of its candy and icing, then forgot all about it.  And even though there was alot of time involved in making it, and very little time in devouring it, it is all worth it knowing that he will always remember the gingerbread houses of his childhood.