Christmas Birthdays

Thirty Three years ago today
Elliott was born
2:43 a.m.
Dozens of family and friends came to welcome him to the world.
It was a joyous Christmas.
With many more to follow.

Popcorn and Elliott Christmas 1984

In time having a Christmas day birthday was well…overwhelming.
So we began a series of 1/2 birthdays on June 25th.
But after a few years I was feeling guilty about ignoring the day.
So was born Elliott’s Christmas Cookie Decorating Party.
The first was just before his 5th birthday in December of 1984.
I don’t recall how many we had but they did stretch well into
If not through his years at Taft Elementary School.
So on a December weekend afternoon a couple of dozen friends would come.

We would roll out the cookie dough on the kitchen island

Will and Elliott cutting cookies

Then cut an array of trees and angels and reindeer and santa claus cookies.
Once baked the decorating would begin in the dining room.

Elliott, Brady Henderson and Anthony Frevele with help from Geraldene Stevenson

My memory is it was a huge flurry of activity
Lots of sticky fun
There was a core of “Taft Tigers” who would come.
As well as the older kids of friends who came to “help”.

Trevor Johnson, Gwen Glasser and Kyla Buxton

Sometime in late elementary the inevitable happened.
Elliott outgrew the party.
We substituted with a chinese auction for all boys
But I still miss those cookie decorating days.
So last year I began to think about re-creating these memories.
Decades have gone by so I wasn’t up to the numbers of past days
But I could handle a few.
Luckily Cassidy and Sloan are right next door
And Tori is always willing to indulge me.

Cassidy and Sloan “creating”.

So last year we had a very fun and sticky cookie decorating afternoon.
I made the mistake of using a royal icing recipe
Way to runny.
Pretty much coated the table top with icing.

Now as it turns out there was another baking memory.
There were a few years when Mother and Daddy lived in OKC

That she had all of her grandsons make gingerbread houses.

Ben, Elliott, Brok & Will building gingerbread houses

And we’ve done it at the afterschool program at our church for a decade.
So this year we did a simplified gingerbread house.
Graham crackers glued to milk cartons
With just the right consistency of store-bought icing for glue.

Much less sticky and just as much fun.
So the tradition continues.
Adjusted over the years for the changes life brings.
With more in years to come I’m sure.
Happy Birthday, Elliott
And Merry Christmas to everyone.

We’ll be back to gardening come spring.

Till then enjoy the winter’s sleep.

Gail