Labor of Love

After the reindeer run we came home and I baked all weekend. Most of the cookies I bake are each 'loved' individually so it takes quite a bit of time but I LOVE doing it every year and giving them to our sweet friends and other people in our lives (work/mail carrier/teachers etc.).

The kiddos were hilarious this year and would frequently say, "i'll make that sacrifice for you" whenever i dropped candy or a cookie would break, etc. They'd race to eat it and 'make the sacrifice' so funny!


all three of the big kids LOVE to help me bake and unwrap all the candy. cailey and braden helped me a lot with the cocoa kiss cookies which are very involved. braden also helped me with the pretzels and they all helped with the snicker bar cookies. kinsey would help with everything if she could...she seriously LOVES it! she was constantly asking to help. she unwrapped most of the candy too.

dipping pretzels...one at a time

ephram stole the cookie from the cookie jar! and my big helpers! they did almost all of the reindeer noses by themselves. and i LOVE the name that braden made up...reindeer noses fits those perfectly!

i did a lot of baking with this little guy attached to me
this year...truly a BLESSING!

the final product! 13 different kinds this year instead of my normal 12. we made and delivered 24 cookie plates and sent even more home to people who have stopped by for a visit. kinsey and cailey helped me put together the cookie plates too...love all my little helpers!
coconut macaroons
chocolate bombs
peanut butter candy bar/snicker cookies
orange drops
people chow
reindeer noses
chocolate covered marshmallows
white chocolate pretzels
rugala
pizzeles
5 layer cookie bar
cocoa kiss cookies
and my new one: skor, butterscotch, m&m cookies

the title of this post when a friend said, "this is truly a labor of love" when she realized all that went into making each of my cookies and I had never thought of it that way. i do love giving them out and baking!