Christmas Cookies!!

On Wednesday, December 11th we got down to business... time for Christmas cookies.  My little elves were super big helpers this year.  I didn't have to do much at all!  Maybe next year the cookies will be entirely kid-made!  :)

We started out by making the most delicious cookies ever - Melting Moments.

First ingredient, BUTTER!

Uh oh!  Nate was already upset by getting dirty and all he did was open the butter up!  :)

Mads looks over the secret family recipe:

I cleaned up Nate's butter hand and then put the kiddos in their aprons.  Once we were safe from messes we could resume our cookie making. 

Tater helped stir up the dough:

My little bakers!

Time to roll the cookies!  

Mads gave it a fantastic effort, but her cookies turned out pretty small.  

Nate gave it a try too! 

Since their little hands made little cookie balls, I took over the rolling process.  Then it was time to put them in the oven!

After we let them cool we whipped up some homemade frosting and put the traditional pink frosting on the Melting Moments:

I love Nate's sideways mouth expression when he is thinking hard about something...

So diligent!

Mads has her tounge out!  :)

Such an awesome swirl technique!

Fantastic work! 

Nate did a fabulous job too!

Hey!  Who is sneaking the left over frosting?

GREAT WORK MADS & NATE!  (You're hired for next year!)

After the Melting Moments were done we took a break for dinner, then we resumed our cookie making with cut-outs!

Nate found a new use for the rolling pin.  I'm not sure if it was a sword or a light saber, though!

Roll it, roll it, cookie dough flat!  :)

Muscles!

Time to cut the shapes!

Nate knows how to get a good cut-out!

Time out to smooch your brother!

If you recall, in 2011 there was a flour fight that took place during cookie time.  

We thought we should include Nate in the flour fight this year, but before it was Nate's turn, Andrew hit Mads with the flour first.  She thought it was super funny.

Then he got Nate.  Nate DID NOT think it was super funny.  He was very very mad at Dad!    Look at this poor little guy!

By this time it was actually time for bed, so we cleaned the kids up and cozied them up in their beds.  Andrew and I finished baking the cutouts and we will save them for frosting and sprinkles another day!  :)

*Update*  The cookies didn't get frosted.  :(  Mads ended up coming down with a stomach bug that weekend and then Nate got a cold.  Since we didn't want to share germs in our frosting we had to forego frosting the cutouts this year.  They were still pretty tasty even without the frosting! :)