Holiday Cookie Baking: Dough Day!

I looked deeply into my calendar and had a realization.  If I did not do holiday baking this weekend, there would be no solid string of days between now and December 26th to do it.

I'm not really about giving holiday cookies after the holidays.

We went to Amish Country last weekend to wrangle up the supplies.  I went to the store yesterday, then returned after signing K up for Archery league because I forgot a major ingredient.

Today is officially Dough Day.  What is Dough Day?  Well, I like to do one day of just making dough.  That way, I get all of the measurement and whatnot out of the way.  I'm able to concentrate on what the recipes call for instead of skipping between mixing, baking and cooling.  Tiredness made me goof once, so I'd like to avoid that.  It wasn't inedible.  I mistook mint extract for the vanilla extract and put that in chocolate/chocolate chip cookies.  Actually, it came out rather delightful.  Still, this method works for me.  One day dough.  One day bake.  Generally, I have a remaining day of packaging.  We'll see how that goes.

And yes, we have a chest freezer in the basement.

K has a test on Wednesday on measurement.  Today has been a test of measurement and a test in patience.  Neither one of us corner the market in the area of patience, so we've made two doughs and took a break.  Gone back, made two more doughs and took a break.

It should be said that our ginger dough needs to sit for 24 hours, so that is kind of where the true inspiration of dough day came from.

We've also made peanut butter dough, apple oatmeal craisin cinnamon chip dough, and thumbprint dough.  We have red hot sugar cookie dough to make, then onward to chocolate/chocolate chip (minus the mint this time.)  The Almost Candy Bars are not a sit-and-get-happy kind of dough, so we'll make those up tomorrow.

What we make this weekend is what we'll have.  I'm okay with that.  I didn't want to rush cookie baking, which is why it is getting done now.  Next up?  Addressing Christmas cards and making a little label for the backs of the cards.  I mail them out the day before Thanksgiving, so I have a week and a half yet to go.  I don't want to rush those, either.

I hear the Kitchenaid calling.  K is hovering so that she can get onto Webkinz while I do a bit of wreckage removal.  I mean, the child is laughing and staring the big greens right into my big brown eyeballs.

She is nearly sitting in my lap.  Pardon me.  I'm getting kicked out.

ETA:  Some of my recipes are here.

National Adoption Month: Adopted children do not come with gift receipts.

Disrupted adoptions are something that absolutely make my head spin.  Here is yet another example.  There was a comment from someone stating about how you don't know what these children were exposed to . . . she lived it and so on.  I agree.  You don't know.  What I do know is that when you go before the court (or fill out the paperwork) you agree to raise this child as if they were yours biologically.  The court and the court papers don't have a special "return policy" clause.

When you have a child by birth, you don't know how your child is going to be, behave or whatnot.  Truly.  You do the best you can and take the best care of yourself, but biological birth isn't a sure shot.  I'm just saying.

I'm friends with someone who adopted internationally.  Their child has RAD.  Believe me, I know issues that can come up.  K's brother has been diagnosed as ADD, OCD and Tourette's.  Holly refers to his diagnoses as "another layer to his onion" yet I can tell you that as much as L can be a pill, Holly and Joe have never considered 'giving him back.'  Heather and her husband haven't 'given' Lewi back either, but I admit that he has tested every boundary that they have set for him.

I've harped on this before.  Yes, yes-- I know.

Adopting children is something that you have to do from the core of your being.  (You should do that with birth children, too.)  It is true that you don't know the family history, the prenatal care . . . that went on.  When you choose to adopt, you choose to adopt the whole child, the wholeness that comes with them.  It is what it is.

It's not to say that the road is going to be one without bumps, hills and cliffs.  I know that both K's brother and Lewi have given their parents a run for their money.  Still, they are loved.

It is National Adoption Month.  Let's eliminate stories like this and give the kids as we promise to the courts and in all of the legalness of it -- a forever home.

Inside, outside, count of three and the ice cube flush.

The first snow!  (That would be my draining rain barrel at the end of the slide.)

Snow!  K tried the recipe for a snow day.  Actually, she combined all childhood tricks into one snow day stew pot.

1 pair of pajamas, worn inside out
1 ice cube, flushed down the toilet
1 spoon under the pillow

After she saw how the snow was progressing at 9:41 PM (well after bedtime, but her dad called K and me out to see the snow,) then she decided that a few more spoons wouldn't hurt.

She didn't get a snow day, but she did get snow.  She was thrilled!  Keep it coming, we say!

Acolyting

It's official.  My daughter is now an acolyte for our Methodist church.  She was an acolyte for her first service this morning.  She did a great job!  I was teasing her about lighting the back drape on fire.  (No, she didn't!)  She was a little nervous.  Hubs and I even did a simultaneous (accidentally) big eye wink at her.  She was in front of the entire church and had to keep from laughing.  We did it one more time just to be hams.  ;)  My in-law's came and really enjoyed the service.  K was glad to have them there and so were we.