Christmas traditions: Gingerbread houses
It's the first of December - officially Christmas! Mums or Dads: traditions are a great way to celebrate the season. Our children will remember these rituals and perhaps even carry them on in years to come. My best advice is to pick just one or two activities to make a tradition of: over-commit and you'll be full of regret as the silly season becomes truly mental! Keep it simple.
For me and mine, the one tradition we try and uphold is the making of gingerbread houses. Initially it was just another thing to do, but by the third year it definitely felt like a bone fide tradition. There's plenty of recipes about (try Pinterest) but for those interested here's one that we use every year: it's tried and true from Countdown's Food magazine.
When my children were small, I would bake the gingerbread a day in advance and then gladwrap or store it in an air-tight container until Christmas Eve. This year they'll be doing the baking as well as the decorating. They make one house each with a bit of help from me to stick it together. Then the fun begins as they use thick icing to "glue" lollies to the sides of the house in a one-for-me-one-for-the-house fashion.
My family alternate our Christmas celebrations between the 25th and 26th of December. The children take one of the houses to the celebrations with my family and the other house to their celebrations with their dad's extended family. It's been a lovely way to keep connection with my in-laws and I think they appreciate that we make an effort to include them in our Christmas traditions.
Some alternate Christmas traditions you might consider:
- Santa visits (if you're in Auckland, bus to town and go to Smith & Caughey: you won't be disappointed ... just go early in December to avoid the queues!)
- Brand new PJs the night before Christmas
- Trimming the Christmas tree; choosing decorations
- Christmas carols, either your local with a picnic and some friends (much less stressful) or the larger regional one if you are game
- A neighbourly get-together with Christmas mince pies
I bet there's some amazing ideas and traditions out there ... we'd love to hear yours in the comments!
