Day 95 - Making Gingerbread houses with children and moms

"No gift that is given in good faith to a worthy recipient can be called small; its effect is so great."
---Buddha

Tis the holiday season - and everyone I know seems to be super busy with the usual stuff but also with getting gifts for family members, friends, teachers, and others whom they like, love, or just feel deserve a present of some sort. Yet the whole process seems to be very stressful, when in truth almost any gift, no matter how small, will be appreciated and considered a kind gesture.

In part that's why today's project was so fun - it wasn't about gifts or gift-giving but just having some young children and moms over to be together in the holiday season. We made gingerbread houses that were anything but professional. Some even collapsed, but even when that happened, the kids seemed to enjoy the rebuilding process. And as it turned out, there was an educational component - terms like stuctural walls (graham crackers), mortar (frosting), house foundation (again, frosting or graham crackers) and other building or architectural words were thrown around, thereby increasing the kids' vocabulary. The whole process may have even gotten a couple of them interested in learning more about construction or interior decorating.

But most of all it was just a fun way to gather during the holiday season :-)