I try to get through Michael’s as quickly as possible. There are too many shiny things that cause hours of distraction, and that’s when I shop alone.

When the kiddos are with me, I’m tempted to throw whatever little thing into the teeny-tiny cart that will keep them distracted. This is usually with the intention of casually handing it to the cashier, “Oh, I changed my mind.”

This time round it was a gingerbread house, and there ain’t no way I was going to pry that from Mo’s grasp to give it back.

In reality, it was a great purchase because we have a visitor right now who’s never made a gingerbread house before.

My host sister from Brazil, Ana Clara, is visiting on her Christmas break from studying at Illinois State University!

She’s fitting right in.

So, I asked Mo which of the pictures she wanted her house to look most like, and she said the one on the right:

Nailed it!

(No extra charge for sarcasm here, people!)

Like I’ve mentioned before, I’m a mediocre crafty-mom at best. So, you know what? The crooked walls and dripping icing and licked candy doesn’t bother me one bit. 

Because we got a lot of smiles.