December is full of traditions. While it’s hard for me to narrow it down to just one favorite, for most of my kids I’m sure if I asked them what their favorite tradition is, they would enthusiastically respond with “gingerbread houses!”. They definitely enjoy our other traditions too- but what kid doesn’t love the excuse to eat a bunch of candy and spend time with cousins and be creative all at once?

My mom always makes an incredible gingerbread house, and as kids we wanted in on the action! So we began making our own little graham cracker gingerbread houses. What once started as a tradition for us as kids, has now expanded to include all the grandkids as well!

Some of us like to keep it simple and build a simple little house with a few pieces of candy to make it as aesthetically pleasing as possible. Others- well, the goal is definitely to pile AS MUCH CANDY AS POSSIBLE onto their little plate :). And others, such as my brother, are able to combine both goals: his objective is definitely getting as much candy as he can, but he always comes up with the most creative ways of doing it! That’s probably one of my favorite things about this tradition- I love seeing the creativity! Each year I’m surprised at the ingenuity of my siblings, children, and nieces and nephews. I love it!


We’ve definitely learned a few hacks over the years to simplify this whole process. For starters, Grandma always makes the gingerbread houses before the main event. This gives the frosting time to dry, and makes it less likely for tiny enthusiastic hands to accidentally crush their house before they’ve barely begun!

We also give each child their own little ziploc/piping bag of frosting with which to “glue” on their candies. This helps to minimize fights, and ensures there’s plenty of frosting to go around. Nothing worse than a 2 year old squishing out all the frosting on their house with no back ups for everyone else!


We also tend to have 2 tables set up- one for the older kids, and one for the really tiny ones. Because honestly, the 2 and 3 year olds are just going to eat the candy! We always try to show them how to squish the piping bag, and attempt to help- but they’re really just more interested in eating the treats. Having their own little table helps us to limit how much candy they’re actually eating, and it helps make sure the older kids have some candy to work with!


Another tip- lay down a big plastic tablecloth before setting out the candies and frosting and houses. Because frosting is going to get EVERYWHERE. By laying down the table cloth, you are making clean up very easy for yourself- just literally wrap it all up (once you’ve removed everyone’s houses) and throw it out! (Unless of course, you didn’t use paper bowls and plates, which is definitely another recommendation for an event such as this!)


And of course, we always end the event with pictures of everyone’s gingerbread house! The kids are always so proud and love showing off their creations! And I love seeing them! Some years we’ve had more candy varieties to choose from, and some years it’s very basic- but whatever the spread of candy building blocks looks like, the kids are always creative and it’s such a blast for everyone involved!

If you don’t already have a gingerbread house tradition, I encourage you to start one- because it’s a blast!