December 15
II Timothy 1:5-6
Faith and traditions are handed down from one generation to another.
Making my list and checking it twice. Did I pack the vanilla, the powdered sugar, the sprinkles, my Christmas apron, and most importantly, plastic containers to put the cookies in? The excitement of baking and decorating cookies, listening to our favorite Christmas carols, and laughing and catching up with dear friends takes me back to my senior year in high school when our cookie baking tradition began.
Laura Andrews Powell, Laura Wander Brummer, and myself began our Christmas cookie baking tradition thirty years ago. Each year we set the date several months in advance. We look so forward to spending the day together, eating lots of yummy food, catching up on our everyday lives, and of course baking and laughing together. At the end of each cookie baking adventure, we count out all the cookies and other goodies from the day and pack them away so neatly in the containers we brought from home as we decide who will receive them.
In recent years, our children have joined us in this annual tradition. Hanley Grace Renney, Drew Powell, Caroline Brummer, and Sara Brummer have taken part in the baking fun ever since their first Christmases. And so, our small group of three has grown to seven, and the joy and laughter have multiplied just as much, as we create memories to cherish for many years to come.
~ Teresa & Hanley Grace Renney
Dear God, for families, friends, faith, traditions, and good times, we give thank, Our Christmas is always merrier because our Christmas baking is a way we show our love for one another and others. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.