I LOVE this time of year!
Thanksgiving has ended, so I still have fresh in my mind all of the things that I have been focusing on in the way of gratitude. I try every single day to focus on what I’m thankful for, but it seems around Thanksgiving that I go even deeper into that way of thinking.
One thing I am always thankful for is my tribe! Our village! With five kids and busy schedules, I couldn’t make it without our people!
I lost my mom when I was 31. She was the one who carried on most of our holiday traditions that were handed down from her grandmother, and now it’s my job in our family to carry those things on! I absolutely love that role, but over the last couple of years, I have been looking for ways to carry on the old traditions and still be able to create new ones as well.
So, to celebrate our siblings and their families, we have started a new tradition that is interlaced with some of my momma’s touches along the way!
Cousin Cookie Day!
This is a day that my husband and I invite our brothers and their families over and we make Christmas cookies, decorate gingerbread houses, make Christmas themed crafts and ornaments, and enjoy each other’s company! (Ok, so maybe the kids do most of the above and the adults have some mimosas and observe, but you get the point!)
Since we all have different schedules on Thanksgiving and Christmas, this is a day where our kids can be with all of their first cousins and nobody has the hustle and bustle of going from house to house and we can all just be together!
One of the traditions that my momma started and I have incorporated in our cookie day celebration is this Cinnamon Christmas Ornament recipe. When my brother and I were little, she would mix these up and let us cut them out, and I still have a few that have lasted all these years!
This recipe super easy to mix up and roll out, and then let the kids cut out the ornaments themselves!
I start with about a cup and a half of cinnamon. Sometimes I’ll add some nutmeg and cloves, but the entire spice mixture is a cup and a half.
I then add 1/4 cup of school glue. (I’ve used white or clear and they both come out the same.) And then add a cup of applesauce.
Mix all of this together in a glass bowl and turn out on your counter or mat.
I usually roll this out on a silicone mat dusted with extra cinnamon and set out our favorite cookie cutters and let the kids go to town!
I keep some cinnamon on hand to dust the mat and rolling pin as we go to keep the dough from sticking.
As they cut their shapes, I use a silicone spatula to transfer over to a sheet of wax paper.
Then poke a hole at the top with a straw so you can add twine or ribbon later on!
I write the kids names on the wax paper with a sharpie under each ornament so once they’re dry, I can make sure each of them gets their own creations to go on their trees at home!
I turn these over with the spatula about every 12 hours and (depending on thickness) they take 3-5 days to fully dry.
They smell soooo good and they look so cute on the tree!
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups ground cinnamon (plus extra to dust the mat and rolling pin)
- 1/4 cup school glue
- 1 cup applesauce
Other supplies:
- Wax paper
- Straw or utensil to poke hole in dough
- Ribbon or twine
I have other ornaments and crafts that are part of our celebration that my momma started with my brother and me, and I’ll share those later on! What are your favorite holiday crafts? Comment and share your ideas with me!
