Just Like That, It's Over

For the last week, I have been baking cookies, wrapping gifts and putting finishing touches on Christmas. You see, the week before Christmas for me is a busy one. I spend countless hours baking cookies and making tins and the Christmas Eve cookie platter. Each night of the week I make a different cookie, usually in the neighborhood of 7 or 8 dozen each. Every year, I make the same staple cookies; chocolate chip, peanut butter, oatmeal raisin, butter and moon cookies. To make it investing on myself and keep my family guessing, I start scouring the Internet just after Thanksgiving to find a new cookie to add. It isn't until around 2 weeks before Christmas I find the cookie. This year it was the struffoli. came out okay. Every year, I have one cookie the gives me trouble and usually its the first batch or 2 of a new creation. But this year my true nemesis was the butter cookie. Seriously, the butter cookie of all things gave me the hardest time. The first batch I made an attepmt to have our son help. Yes, I, the queen of the Christmas cookie thought it would be best for a 2 1/2 year old to help make cookies. He was very enthusiastic! Mommy, however, was resisting the urge to redecorate each one because they weren't decorated evenly or symetrical. They were his creations, though, and I was happy to have them included in my platter and tins. Until I went to check on the first tray of cookies. FLAT!!! They looked like wafers. This had always been my quickest cookie. It was late, our son needed to get to sleep and so did mommy. As if the wafers weren't bad enough, when I went back to wash everything, neither myself or my hubby could get the cookie press apart. It was as I'd it was glued shut! So, the next day, I borrowed my mom's and tried a new recipe, again...FLAT!!! New press, new recipe, same result. On day three, I went to get a brand new press and tried yet a third recipe. These ones were not like my usual perfect butter cookies, but they we're good enough. I was done at that point. I also was baking a carrot cake and brownies. I was literally baking up until we walked out the door both days. I'm never that far behind. So, I decided that for the sake of the holiday and how totally awesome it would be with my son this year, I disconnected from social media for the better part of Christmas Eve and Christmas day. I had been so busy and hadn't had the chance to spend real quality time with him. I wanted his Christmas to be special and I wanted to remember it for myself and for him. But after all of the prep work, all the stress, it's just done. But today, when I woke up later than any other Monday (I'm on vacation this week) with my son and hubby snuggled in bed with me, I smiled knowing that I still have 6 more days to enjoy my time with them...and I'm so happy for that.