I have so many great memories surrounding Christmas. Most of them are from the traditions we celebrate year after year. As the kids grew older I was worried some of these traditions would die, but I have been pleasantly surprised that my kids have wanted to continue the traditions as much as my husband and I have. Gingerbread House Decorating is a tradition we have had for as long as I can remember. It started with hubby and I doing most of the work then to the kids taking over and doing most of it themselves.
We buy a kit because to me the fun is decorating it, not baking it. But if you like baking gingerbread then by all means make your own, you are my hero. I usually put the house together and then the kids take over. We use candy from the kit plus we always add some extras. We try to change it up so the houses look a little different every year. My favorite part about decorating the gingerbread house is the time we get to spend together. We either watch a Christmas movie or listen to Christmas music while we’re decorating and of course, some of the candy gets eaten.
The kids decide what they want the house to look like then get started on their part. They usually divide up the house and work on different areas.
Sometimes they want to add extra accessories to the gingerbread house. This time Zach decided he wanted to make a sled for gingerbread Santa. He grabbed some small candy canes and a piece of a graham cracker then used the frosting to hold it all together. I recommend waiting 15 minutes before handling it. He also made a little Santa hat for the little gingerbread Santa.
The kids finished off the house by adding a lot of little details. I love the big lights hanging around the house and the decorated roof and windows.
My favorite part is the wreath and the little icicles hanging from the roof and over the front door.
Now it’s time to decorate the trees. All you need is a can of frosting, sugar cones, and some festive candy sprinkles. You want the frosting to be pretty thick so it stays on well and so the sprinkles stick to it. This is the messy part because you can’t help but get it on your fingers. Not that having frosting on your fingers is a bad thing.
There’s usually plenty of goofing around and having fun too. I think he looks like the grinch here.
While the frosting is still sticky add the sprinkles. You can either shake the sprinkles on or roll the cone in the sprinkles. Your choice! It just depends on the coverage you want.
This is my favorite. I love that the clear sprinkles look like ice and snow on a winter tree.
We added the trees to the tray then sprinkled coconut around so it looks like snow on the ground. I added a couple things too, like the snow on the chimney and the candy cane walkway to the house.
I wanted to show you some of the house details up close. The kids are always pretty excited about how they turn out.
I love spending this time with my kids and watching them create and have fun together.
I also love that we’re building memories and sharing traditions with our children. What holiday memories are you creating?
Pin it for later: Gingerbread House Decorating
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