At NCC this advent Pastor Mark has been focused on JOY. Specifically Matthew 2:10 where the wise men see the start and "they rejoiced with exceeding great joy."
In keeping with the message series I am trying to do something each week that reconnects the traditions of Christmas to the worship of God and a deeper connection with people. Last week's joy came in the form of cookies. Lots and lots of cookies.
On Wednesday I baked and decorated with the NCL Fellows in preparation for our Christmas party which celebrates our year together with the mentors, board members, alumni, friends, and family. Thursday night brought more cookie madness because Annie, Erica, and I hosted a little cookie decoration gathering. "Crazy flying sprinkles" all around. But the end result was that friends celebrated together, people got tasty treats to enjoy, and we had a heck of a good time using our creative gifts, singing carols, and spritzing each other with icing. Ooops.
Here are a few pictures of the finished product. We even managed to make a few cookies that said "Joy".
I realize that blue is not a traditional Christmas color. But I like it!
The cookies themselves are gingerbread and orange shortbread. I had never thought to decorate shortbread but I hope to never have a Christmas without Annie's butter-less orange zest and chocolate chip shortbread cookies. While I had planned to use this gingerbread recipe, I went with the slice and bake because of sheer volume.
As a Christmas treat, Erica and her co-workers even made some red, white and blue tree and "liberty bell" cookies for a friend who just got his US residency. Sweet!
Merry Christmas!
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