Monday, December 22, 2008

Gingerbread House Adventures

We've been making gingerbread houses each year with the kids for a while now, and it is always something we look forward to. We like to put them together on Thanksgiving day if we can because then we have the entire month of December to enjoy snacking on them!

Typically we buy the premade house kit, but since the candies are all kind of yuck with the kits, we buy lots of better candy to fill it up with. Last year was a bit different. I decided to make a gingerbread train like the one we saw in a magazine the year prior. It was my first experience making my own gingerbread--tons of work, but it was so much fun! Everyone enjoyed being able to decorate their own piece of the train.

The kids have been looking forward to making another train this year, but I keep putting it off. I finally decided I'd better get on board and make something for my kids to decorate before I traumatize them for life...but this year I thought it would be fun to make a gingerbread village and have all the kids decorate their own house.

The making of the houses took over my week, leaving other messes everywhere, but I just kept telling myself it was worth! I mad 3 batches of dough on Monday and then spent Tuesday rolling and cutting and baking and cooling and "gluing" 5 houses for my kids.

It was lots of fun, the kids of course loved it. Dad was there to help decorate, which was a special treat because work has kept him more than busy these past few weeks. Grandma Jane was able to come and help too, so we had plenty of helping hands to get the job done! I should have made the houses smaller so that they really could have sat around together in a "village". I didn't really realize how big I was making the pattern! The kids don't care, they are just glad to have made them finally.


Giving a few rules and ideas before the candifying begins












Bedtime for Evie


The finished products

For fun, here are our last few gingerbread creations! The train really was my favorite, I think we will go back to that next year...maybe.


2007


2006


2005

5 comments:

Annukka said...

That looks like so much fun! The houses are super cute too. Your kids did very good job!

I can't wait to start to make houses with our kids. This year we stuck to the cookie making and decorating. :)

By the way, can you e-mail (when you have time) the directions to the gingerbread train?

The Eccles said...

You are a nice Mommy to let everybody have their own...I just let them each have a wall. I love the train...SO CUTE!!!!!

Candy said...

Hello from the "other" Beauchamp family :) That is such a cool idea. Way more talent than I. I always let my mother in law do the house with the kids. I don't have the patience for it at all. LOVE the train!

Kayla said...

Making Gingerbread must have been lots of work. We didn't even make Gingerbread houses this year, but there might still be time. . .

Laura said...

Wow, that was a lot of work! Great job, Keri! Just reading that post made me tired for you!