Now you know the end of the story, how about the beginning. I'm down to the last few things to bake for Christmas, you know those traditional things that you just have to make every year because you never make them any other time of the year? One of those things we do are Jam Cakes, which is a recipe from my great grandmother. My mom has asked me several times now if I have made them yet.

So last night after working the full time job and then going to teach at Michaels I had planned to do them. I figured I could pop them in the oven, since they bake for an hour and a half, make me something to eat and the fudge I have been putting off and be done for the night.

It takes over an hour of baking for me to realise that I screwed up and left out something. And no it couldn't be something like one of the spices that go into it. Nope. I left out the baking soda! So I had two flat, heavy bundt cakes, which got dumped into the trash.

Thankfully the fudge turned out well. With me it can go either way, as I have had it not set before.

I also had this wonderful idea to start on the butter cookies, which we turn into nut topped, jelly or nutella filled cookies. I ended up baking 7 doz of the nut topped ones, since I had to finish out the topping I made up and baked up the rest of the cookies to become the sandwich cookies. Unfortunately I will have to make some more butter cookie dough tonight to make more of the sandwich cookies. But I just have those and the spritz cookies left. And of course another batch or two of jam cakes.

I baked 35 dz the weekend of Thanksgiving, and baked another 55 dz this last weekend.

I am about holiday baked out!

Want to send a few dozen cookies my way so I don't have to do it - lol! I haven't even started baking yet

I start early so that the guys at work will have them all through December. Plus between the full time and part time job and other things that come up I have learned I have to start early. This year I ended up not even baking for two weeks in there. I didn't really feel like baking so much this weekend, but we were out and I had other people I wanted to get cookies too.

I am trying to get myself motivated to start today. I have 4 batches of cut out cookies to make (3 dz ea.), cream cheese poinsettias, 2 batch spritz, 2new cookies for my newly diabetic grandpa and my grandma's fudge, which I have also never made before. All to be baked,decorated and packed up before traveling for x-mas. Sooooo behind this year!

Sooo did you get your stuff done or even just started on?

Friday night I finished what I thought was the last of my cookies, bringing the tally up to 110doz cookies. Saturday we baked 4 jam cakes, so that is done. Plus I've also done two pans of fudge.

Now this week I just have Christmas eve things to do, a couple of desserts for Christmas day, and then prep for our trip next week. I also have to go shopping for one more Christmas present. Doesn't seem like alot, but I only have evening hours to do it, except Friday, and I'd rather have as much done as I can before then.