Gingerbread Houses

This year I finally found a good recipe for making homemade gingerbread houses!  The recipe was easy and Piper and I had fun making them while Blake was at school.

I love watching her excitement to help me in the kitchen.  The girl loves to cook!  Cracking eggs are her favorite although it is a bit tricky still.  I love how she always climbs on the counter when we determine that we are going to cook something.  Its her spot.

Once we had the gingerbread houses cooked, I found a recipe for the best gingerbread glue and it held up to its name!  These houses were STURDY and ready for piles of candy and so were the kids.

We assembled the houses and then over the weekend we began to decorate.  I was the frosting spreader and the kids did all the rest.  

I absolutely love Blake's attention to detail for his house.  His attention to detail and his realistic-ness that made him look at me funny when I suggested he just use white frosting for the tree had me smiling the whole time.  "Trees are GREEN mom"  For the love, how do I not know that?!  ;)

So, ladies and gentlemen here you have it - Our houses.

Blake:  A wreath over the front door, a size appropriate snowman out front, a pattern of lights trimming the roof, a Santa on top (and he was VERY concerned that we didn't have a chimney so "its weird that he is just standing up there"), and his house backs to a private ice skating pond with a snowbank and snowballs next to it.

And now for Piper's:

Just a lot of candy (all of which has been licked) in random places <3

It took them two different "sessions" of decorating because they worked so hard their hands got tired BUT they are SO proud of their houses it was so fun to watch!