This weekend was full on gingerbread. We’ve been decorating gingerbread houses since Adrienne was a baby. Over the years we’ve had cousins, friends, and parties of sorts. Last year we totally stepped it up, and it rocked. This year, we changed it up, and it rocked.
Emily and I have been talking and buying gingerbread stuff for weeks. We get a basic layout in our heads and then we make it happen. Each girl gets to invite a few friends(we had 11 total girlies), except Sofie and Natty who count as each other’s friends, and Adrienne who crossed over the adult helper line this year.
The prep for the party is just as fun as the party itself. We enlist the help of our friends with bribes of pizza and beverages, and we banish men and kids to basement as we ready prizes, bake, and put houses together.
Before everyone got there, girlfriend was getting restless. I invited her to help with the first cooking project, tiny gingerbread cakes. She got out her stool and dug in like a big girl.
I really love seeing her do bigger girl things. I love including my kids in everyday domestic tasks, and she’s finally getting mature enough to handle it.
Finally the gang showed up and it was time to get to work. First up was getting prizes ready for the scavenger hunt. There was assembling, sorting, and organizing to do!
While that was going on in the dining room, we had a whole ‘nother crew in the kitchen attempting making the big gingerbread guy. Like last year, it required 2 tries:)
The good news is that Alison is a whiz at making “pops” out of anything that crumbles up. Seriously, she can use anything! She immediately started crumbling, mixing, and dipping.
That’s her in the back, in the red. Ooooh, what’s Mark doing you ask? Well, that’s a jigsaw in the kitchen and he’s cutting gingerbread house cookie pieces. We don’t mess around here.
Let me tell you that was genius. Those houses were perfectly cut! I may leave the jigsaw as a kitchen appliance. It might be handy for vegetables or cheese.
Em started putting the houses together, but your hand gets tired doing that frosting so she handed it over to Joni. I was integral as an assistant holding her straw. Luckily the use of heavy machinery was over by then.
Historically Anne does not have a good record of putting houses together. Just think blow driers, canned goods, and leaning towers. Everyone deserves a second third fourth fifth chance though, so we gave her the benefit of the doubt.
Yep, not a lick of improvement. If you put her on Survivor and there was a gingerbread challenge she’d be voted off.
By the time I went to bed the house was starting to look like a Gingerbread party was going to happen the next day(actually it was the next day ‘cause I like me some late night hours when I’m doing projects:).
The next morning it seemed like I had a lot of time to get ready. After church I had to run into Michaels for some last minute things, then I was feeling so chill I told Mark to head up to Ulta ‘cause I needed shampoo. Seemed important at the time. Why do I tell you all this? So you can appreciate the fact that I was working my a** off about an hour before the party! By the time Anne and Joni arrived I was sweating, but ready.
With just a few minutes to spare and I looked around and surveyed the fruit of my labor. Then I realized Sof was still naked with un-brushed hair in her bed napping. I bolted up the stairs and woke her. It wasn’t hard, she’s been talking about this party for a month. She came down and looked for her spot at the table. Then she wanted to know if she could eat the candy. Girlfriend has a serious sweet tooth. Like mama like baby:)
Finally Emily showed up with 6 of the girls, Lexi’s friends were all there, and it was time to get the party started!
We had the kids decorate bags first. This would be where they would store all of their prizes!
Once the bags were decorated, the groups took turns going downstairs to complete a scavenger hunt.
“Under the stairs you’ll find a door. Open it up and look on the floor.”
“Run, run all the way to the fridge. Open it up just a smidge.
Your prize is sneaky, he might jump out. You’ll have to grab him fast no doubt!”
“While hanging in the bathroom with friends, take a peek in some drawers, where you go next depends…”
“Now to the playroom to finish the hunt. This one is tricky I have to be blunt! Don’t just grab the first prize you see, if it doesn’t have your name put it back where it be. Keep looking and looking till you find the one right for you, better get going there still lots to do!”
Once everyone’s prize bags were full, it was back upstairs for the main event. Finally, decorating gingerbread houses!
Natty Bug finally got dropped off by daddy. She sat in her toddler chair at the table with the big girls. She figured out what to do pretty quick!
“What candy? What are you talking about? I didn’t see any candy.”
The amount of sugar we let these children eat was almost child abuse. For the record, no one puked(that I’m aware of).
We’re not totally irresponsible. We played musical chairs to burn a few calories.
Adrienne was in charge of music.
My mini me…taking pictures!
Audrey, Savana, Lexi, and Mila
Taylor, Livy, and Sophia
Claire, Madelyn, and Kaitlyn
So what does it look like when this is all done?
Long after this mess is cleaned up, little girls will have sweet memories of their day of fun. It has become one of my favorite events of the year. There’s nothing I love more than little girls and sugar. Just ask my dentist.
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