Cookies and Carols

(YouTube -- George Winston's Carol of the Bells.  Love this.)

There is something powerful and healing about the rituals we create and practice for this time of year.  

'Tis the season for cookies and carols at our house. At least, it usually is. But this year feels a little different, a little more hesitant, a little...less.

By this point in the holiday season I have baked myself into a frenzy. Or at least that has been the case since the first year we were married, and I baked homemade cookies as presents with flour, sugar and other baking ingredients that I'd gotten on sale and with double coupons so we could afford it on our meager law school days income.  Since everyone loved the cookies, I've made them ever since, even as life has gotten insanely hectic and the lupus wears me out.

I suppose it is my way of easing into the season with a chocolate-frosted bang.

But this year, I hadn't done any baking until Tuesday.  And then only because I got a wild need to bake something because The Peanut wanted to do what we always do and make cookies, and I wanted to make things feel like our usual Christmas for her.

Between my recent cancer surgery and her being sick for a week, I just couldn't muster the energy this year.

Until Tuesday.

Just mixing together ingredients and rolling the dough into little balls was almost a healing ease into the Christmas season.  Although I couldn't do much, just doing something made a world of difference in terms of mood and attitude.

So my advice for you, if you happen to be in a holiday or life funk?  Pick out one favorite thing you loved as a kid about this time of year.  And find a way to do it.

Here are a few ideas:
Bake some yummy cookies?  Here are some recipe ideas from this blog:

-- Lemon Meltaways
-- Honey Spice Slices
-- Brownie Bites, Chocolate Cookie Cups with Chocolate Centers and Rum Balls

Make a few salt dough ornaments for your tree or a mantle decoration?  Gotcha covered.  (I was reminded of how fun these are to make while watching The Chew the other day.  We are definitely making some of these over Christmas break just for fun.)

Need to kick back and relax with some soothing Christmas music? Pull out George Winston's December album or, better yet, pop on the Vince Guaraldi Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack album, and dance around the living room like the kids do in the cartoon. Too, too fun.

You don't remember how they dance? Here, let me help:



(YouTube -- Charlie Brown Christmas dance scene.  Just get up from your desk and dance, you know you want to...)

See what I mean? Serious fun. Especially when you get your kids dancing along with you -- guaranteed giggle fest at our house.

I'm headed out in a bit to take the doggie to the groomers for a desperately needed bath (no idea what she got into in our yard, but she is SMELL-EEEEE-PEEEEE-UUUUUU, as The Peanut says, then over to pick up cupcakes for their class Christmas party, and then off to deliver some cookie trays to Mr. ReddHedd's office.  It's a full day of holiday cheer here.

Hope your day is a joyous one as well.