Gingerbread is my thing. I love it. No one else in my family eats it, so I never make it, but I love it all the same. And come Christmas? It's all things gingerbread. Gingerbread ornaments, gingerbread lights, gingerbread plates, and ... gingerbread houses.
Every year since the biggest pea was 3, I've had a mother-daughter gingerbread house party. My mother had mother-daughter Christmas teas when I was growing up. I have mother-daughter gingerbread house decorating parties. Every year. It's what I do.
I like to have the party early, so the houses my peas make can decorate my dining room table. So I planned ahead. I ordered 15 gingerbread houses November 1st. Weeks passed. No gingerbread houses. I finally called the day before Thanksgiving. It seems the company (not to mention names: Wilton) made an error. The houses were not able to be sent, so they were returned to the warehouse. And oh by the way ~ did we forget to tell you?
I was distraught. Lip quivering. Eyes welling. All I could whisper was, "You mean they aren't coming?" I choked out, "Could you try to resend?" To his credit, the customer service guy felt bad. Truly. But there was no way he could guarantee the resend.
My favorite tradition. Little girls with sugar highs and frosting everywhere. I love it when in August I still find myself scraping the hardened frosting off my furniture. Happy memories. My tradition. How can Christmas happen without gingerbread houses?
Then I got a care package. For 7 years my BFF has come with her daughter to my gingerbread house party, and she lovingly sent me houses. So now I had two houses. Then my mom sent a box. Two more houses. And my oldest pea's BFF? She sent one too. Cuz you know what? They get me. And me? I'm the one who hosts who the mother-daughter gingerbread house party.
5 houses. It was enough for Christmas to come, but the party just wouldn't be what we hoped for.
But yesterday? Yesterday. Yesterday Wilton came through. SIX gingerbread houses made it! Eleven total.
Yep. I have a mother-daughter gingerbread house party. Every year.
15 comments:
I teared up. It's so wonderful that everyone pulled together and got you the gingerbread houses so you could keep your traditions alive. :) I adore Christmas and desperately miss the traditions of my childhood.
So have fun making your gingerbread houses and smear a little extra icing on the furniture for all those fabulous people who got that this was important. :)
What a wonderful story! I am so glad that you got your houses! If we were in Jordan, I'd bring my daughter and crash your party just to learn this tradition from a pro :-)
serendipity, for sure.
happy endings are lovely. and i mean that in a non-massage-at-the-sketchy-parlor-down-the-street kind of a way.
Ooooh - I like your tradition! I think I am going to have to copy it!!
Oh, can I come over? I can bring my own gingerbread.
If you have Ikea (I know a long shot but it might help others) you can buy gingerbread dough there all you have to do is roll it out and cut it. We bought some today to make cookies tomorrow while we decorate our tree.
I don't know what it's like there (I'm thinking VERY different) but we have lots of kits in the grocery too. If it had any chance of getting to you in time I'd have sent you some of them.
Please, post pictures of your party. It sounds like so much fun!
I love that! How fun. You are a great mom!
And an awesome friend, can I just say Thank you so much for the necklace. I love it. I haven't taken it off all day. It is so cool. That was the nicest thing ever. Saige loves her bracelet. She is all about the evil eye from her visits to Turkey so she was delighted with the bracelet.
You're the best!!!! Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
And please post pictures of your houses. I would love to see them.
Wow how cool is that exactly what christmas is all about (thats both the gingegrbread thing and the loving and giving thing) and what a memory that will make for future generations.... the christmas the gingerbread almost didnt make it!!!
Oh I would have cried too.
So happy to hear that your story has a happy ending.
Best friends really are the best!
I am glad this had a happy ending. Hope the party went well. We will be making gingerbread houses this year. The last two years in Jakarta we didn't dare, the ants were always there waiting for any crumb to be dropped. If we had put out Gingerbread houses it would have been a feast for the ants! Now we are in Germany and I haven't seen a single ant!
Oh My... how sweet is that? Have a very merry gingerbread-house Christmas!
Awesome story. I love thos Jordan moments! Glad you get to sustain your tradition. Speaking of traditions, Kinzi and I may be doing a coffee (hot chocolate) get together soon. Interested?
Awww, love this. Traditions make Christmas around here. For us one of the biggest is getting together with my BFF and her kids to decorate cookies, all afternoon!! One year I was dog-sick and she came and got the kids and they carried on!
Ohhh so glad it all worked out - yum gingerbread!
yay!! Im glad it worked out for you. We will be needing pictures.
OK I was all teary too.... You have to post pictures! HOW FUN! I need to find something special with my kiddos... I like that idea, may have to steal it!
Happy New Years!
Post a Comment