Baked...a lot!

Today we had our 3rd baking day. Apparently, Nana makes some really good cookies (people fight over them!)and rolls and bread! (I am not really bragging here- I am NOT a baker, but it is a lot of fun when people like your food. (I like to quote Marie, the Mom on Everybody Loves Raymond- "All I have is my food!")
About 7 or 8 years ago, I got into grinding wheat berries into flour and I made a LOT of bread and decided to give the Nestle Tollhouse Cookie recipe a little wheat tweek. Well, it was a hit. My kids and nephews went nuts over them- hoarding them in their bedrooms and having knock down drag out fights over them ;~) . Now, my son in law and Little Mama have little feuds over them too. Last year I added my oatmeal raisin version and I will have to say it is about the yummiest cookie I have ever had, let alone, actually made.
Anyway, Nana just can't bring herself to buy cookies, so Little Mama and I have started having baking days! Today, we added rolls and bread to the mix. A lot of work, but I think totally worth it. (Little Mama says, "It is a lot of work for just a WEEK'S worth of cookies." haha- we split the loot and it is really a good month's + of cookies if you ration them well).
I also got the camera out (duh) and here are the highlights of our baking day!

We did 7 batches of cookies-  3 Nestle Wheat and 4 Oatmeal raisin- we lined up the bowls and measured out each ingredient

I brought the ingredients in buckets, tupperware, old jars- whatever I could find!

(No sprite is not an ingredient in our cookies)

These babies were humming almost all day!

Ohhh, the Oatmeal raisin- so yummylicious!

The chocolate chips and the Real Salt!

These are pre-rolls- very nice dough- got the recipe with my bread machine and it is the BEST roll recipe I have ever made!

The rolls are a-risin'!

The cookies!!

Little Mama putting the dough into balls on the cookie sheets, with her little helper, JR, who just woke up from a nap!

The bread all ready for the oven! I forgot my recipe book, so I got the recipe off the internet- it is delicious!!! Now I gotta find it again!

Here is our haul! We did have a few casualties (Nana left a couple trays in for a bit too long- the timer doesn't do a re-buzz)
About 5 dozen cookies each, 15 rolls each, and 4 mini loaves each. Not bad for a day's work!

It is almost CHRISTMAS!

I am really looking forward to Christmas! We historically have wonderful Christmases, but I guess with the grandboys, an element of extra fun is added! I just read an article about not feeling like you have to give an "obligatory" gift just because of what people will think of you if you don't give a gift. I happen to really like giving gifts and getting creative. This year, I do seem to have gone a little "Christmas Crazy" as my daughter would call it. On one side of our family, we don't really do a gift exchange, so my gifts there are a little less "flashy". I try to major on the kids, and give "couple/family" gifts where I can.
A gift is a sacrifice- in these times especially, and I don't feel like I can or want to give up gift giving. There is always something you can give someone and it is a great feeling!