Successful Family Cookie Baking Day

My in-laws have a family tradition of baking Christmas cookies together on one day each year. I have to admit that when my (then future) Mother In-Law invited me, nearly 6 years ago, I was a little nervous about the idea. In my family we have a few ADHD-ers who love to get off task, a few too many folks who try to be simultaneously in charge, and it is not uncommon for someone's feelings to end up hurt... However, every single Cookie Baking Day I've spent with my in-laws has just been lovely!!

Recently, someone asked my what rules are put in place to ensure that the experience is purely joyful and fun... and I didn't know what to say. Honestly, most of it feels like it's happening organically, which is definitely part of the magic! Although, after thinking about it for a little while, I was able to compile a list of reasons that this experience seems to go well. I hope this helps you to create a magical cookie-baking day with your family!

12 Simple Tips To Create a Jolly Cookie-Baking Day

1. Play Christmas music! .....and it doesn't hurt to also have football on the TV (muted)

2. Have a relaxed, no-rush attitude. Let this be your only plan for the day.

3. ONLY make the cookies that the people making the cookies want to take home to eat

4. Have children help - they make for excellent entertainment! (For example, my niece helped me make the Turtles, but once she had her allowed amount of Rolo's, she decided to dip out and find a new task, lol!)

5. Pre-Make the dough. Each family was assigned some dough to pre-make and BRING to the cooking baking day, so it was mostly baking and decorating. Although we did make a little bit of the dough day of too, for those who forgot. But this is a really good tip! it speeds up the day too!

6. Order pizza & take a lunch break 

7. Eat at least 3% of the cookies while you work  

8. Eliminate the risks of pets eating your cookies by putting them outside, or in a kennel, or in another room.

9. No nit-picking! If you are not the one rolling the dough into circles, you don't get to decide if the circles are too big or too small. If you are not the one frosting the cookies, you do not get to decide if they are good enough, or decide what colors to use, or whether or not there are sprinkles or sugar on the peanut butter cookies, etc. (This also helps with divvying up the duties. work on whatever you have a strong preference for!)

10. Have 1 person assigned to watching the oven to ensure nothing gets burned.

11. Have both bake, and no-bake, cookie options to prevent the oven chaos.

12. If you don't help to make the cookies, you don't get to take any home with you!

Reply to add your suggestions for a positive Cookie Baking Day and let me know which of these items was most helpful for you to implement!