What's Left? and The Cookie Ribbon Tradition

My checklist is not as long as it has been in years past at this time. It is so nice to have much of my shopping finished, and by the end of the weekend the decorating will be finished as well. I was hoping to shop with Joe this weekend, but I think that the hunt for deer will continue for some days to come. Maybe we can get out Saturday evening with the little boys. I usually shop at least once with my sisters, but we don't have anything planned this year.

Shopping online has been a wonderful experience for me, and nearly all that I ordered has already arrived to be wrapped, and the last package is due to arrive tomorrow. I have made a list of the few remaining items and will need to go out tomorrow to finish my shopping. The little boys need to go out to get shopping done this weekend as well.

I am going to pace myself to do some of the wrapping every day or so and have it finished up next weekend.

I did write our family Christmas letter, and still need to get the boys' school pictures ready to go out with the Christmas mail. That should not take long. I hope to have them all in the mail on Monday.

Next weekend, on Saturday, the cookie ribbon Christmas countdown begins. The history of the cookie ribbon in my family began when I was probably nine. We each got a long wide ribbon with a poem on top, a bell on the bottom and a dozen cookies in between. I think they were vanilla wafers the first year, and something equally as simple until we were a bit older and my Mom baked pinwheels, snickerdoodles and a couple of other types of cookies that were just the right size (they must be small in diameter) to fit on our ribbons.

My boys have had cookie ribbons for many years. Theirs are made from Christmas print fabric ribbons. I am probably only going to make one for each of the little boys this year as the other three are in their twenties now. The poem reads:

December 13th 'til Christmas
Is the longest time of year.
It seems as though Old Santa
Will never appear.
"How many days 'til Christmas?"
It's mighty hard to count.
So this cookie ribbon
Will tell you the exact amount.
Take off a cookie every night
As the sandman casts his spell
And Christmas Eve will be here
By the time you reach the bell.

I try to have several varieties of cookies on the ribbons, so we will be baking later this week, and Saturday for sure. I like to have the ribbons on the wall before dinner time on December 13th, but it is nice to have fresh cookies on them as the last few are on there for over a week. I wrap each cookie individually and tie it onto the ribbon with yarn.

Here is a sample of a cookie ribbon before the cookies go on. I reuse the ribbons each year, or for at least as long as they look nice. (See the comments for this post for measurements.)