Christmas Delights

Isn't Christmas lovely?  We are taking time this week to enjoy some of its special enticements.  At our house, I'm the one who enjoys treat-making; the girls prefer Christmas crafts.  It's become tradition for them to paint two or three Christmas pieces, which we date with Sharpie on the back.

This morning, they painted village houses and ornaments, purchased at Michaels, while Christmas music played on the stereo.

Yesterday, I baked German chocolate/chocolate chip cookies, ginger crinkles, and sesame parmesan thins.  The latter was a first for me, and about one third of them crumbled as I removed them from the cookie sheet after baking.  They were still tasty!  On Sunday, I made another batch of mocha fudge; this time, I mixed the marshmallows in first, stirred til they melted completely, and let the mixture cool a few minutes before adding the chocolate chips.  Alas, the result was the same as last week.  My conclusion: this is just a dry, crumbly, yet delectable fudge.

Today, I'm planning to make cranberry bark and saltine toffee.  Himself asked this morning as I described my plans for the day, "What are you going to do with all this stuff?"  I opted not to point out the obvious (eat it), and answered instead, "I'm giving it to neighbors."  Which I am.  Six cute cookie boxes, three tins, and several decorted treat bags await to be filled with all sorts of goodies.  After the girls and I nibble a few, that is.  You should know that Himself is not a sweets lover, so it's up to the girls and me to make up the difference.

Well, somebody's got to do it.