Gingerbread houses

We have some Christmas traditions that we do every year. Right after Thanksgiving we had family counsel and I asked the kids what family traditions they wanted to do this year in December. I make a calendar with activities we do every day during the Christmas holiday. Orchestra concerts and work parties are taken out of the calendar so we don't have an activity is a family planned on those days but the rest of the time we have something planned to do as a family.

Some of their favorite traditions are making gingerbread houses, looking at the lights at the temple visitor center, driving around to see lights on houses, and making their own Christmas ornaments.

We made gingerbread houses one night. We always get cats that have the frosting already made and the shapes already cut out. All they have to do is put the shapes together with frosting, have a little patience, and use the candy to decorate. They're always in a hurry to get to the candy, so the houses are pretty bare. The houses are never very elaborate but they have a lot of fun making them and then destroying them.