Decorating Gingerbread Houses

Decorating Gingerbread houses is a tradition that we started when Matthew was young.  We have been doing it for years now, and something the kids, and I always enjoy.  A few things about decorating gingerbread houses, it is messy, it is hard to watch if you are type A (like me), Grandmas, Aunts, and Uncles are awesome at supervising! 

A look back on our houses in the past...

 

{2012}

{2011}

{2010}

The train, that was Mommy's that no one was allowed to help with...lol!

And now debuting the 2013 Gingerbread house creations....

And now some helpful hints!

 

1.  If you don't plan on eating any of your Gingerbread house, I find using hot glue to assemble the house is so much more sturdy, easy, and less time consuming.  Of course this would be an adult job.  If you are using icing to assemble, try to do that hours before you want to decorate, so the icing sets and makes the house less fragile. 

2.  Give yourself plenty of time and focus.  I would let my preschoolers do this type of activity while I am say making dinner in the kitchen.  We did ours on a Sunday afternoon, while the baby was napping, so the kids had my full attention. 

3.  Buy some extra goodies.  The candy that comes with the kit is great, but it is always fun to add more.  This year I added marshmallows, sugar gingerbread men and candy canes, and chocolate chips.  The options are endless.

4.  Cover your table.  I just used the place mats we had there, but I should have covered the entire table.  Expect a mess.  Be ready for the clean up!

5.  Sit back and let the kiddos take the lead.  This is SO hard for me to do, but they really enjoy making their own creation.   

6. Make a party out of it.  Last year we had a play date with friends dedicated to decorating gingerbread houses.  We simply used graham crackers that a mom per-assembled into houses, everyone brought toppings and we had a great time.  

ENJOY!