Christmas Card Cookies

So this one time, I started making cookies in the middle of the winter. And loved them. And then hated everything about cookies two weeks later because I just knew I would never be any good at it.. And I thought about giving it up and going back to my life without icing on my pants and color gel on my fingers. I thought about the late nights and early mornings I could reclaim, the sleep that would come back to me, the designs that would stop floating in and out of my dreams and all the healthy food my children would begin to eat. But mostly I thought about how much I felt like a complete cookie failure. After at least 12 minutes of self pity, the kindest person in the world...and the ONLY person in the world that sends me legitimate emails with the word "dear" in the title... told me to stop being the whining me and start being the cookie making me again. So I did.

And then a few weeks ago she also told me she had this great idea for a cookie project and that I should do it. So I did. Again. See, she has the most amazing and beautiful blog in the whole entire world and also a gorgeous garden and I have total garden envy and photography skills envy and... well... I just like her a lot, so I do what she tells me to do. (Except obviously, she's SUPER sweet and polite and would never actually tell me to do anything. Even if I totally deserve it.)

We were supposed to choose a Christmas card that inspired us. The thing is, they don't really celebrate Christmas here in Korea like we do other places. So I had to go peruse cards online. And since I am so easily persuaded and "cookie inspired," I pretty much stopped at card #2. THIS card. And a huge chunk of you guys were all at Cookie Con, and we've pretty well established that I was jealous and missed my home country... so these pretty much had to happen.

And I made these charming little dears that remind me of my own country and how grateful I will be to someday return to a land where they celebrate Christmas with lights and cocoa and candy canes and Christmas Carols.

And because I love you all, wherever you live.... I kind of, maybe, made a teeny little video to show you how to get the realistic looking Christmas tree effect.

Many, many other talented cookie people also participated in Haniela's fantastic Christmas Card Cookie Project. Please check them out and be inspired in your own holiday cookie making!