sorta, kinda martha-like

When the December issue of Martha arrived, I was immediately hooked on this scene above - it's been on my inspiration board since it arrived. It must be all that Scandinavian goodness. Or the sleeping child under handknit blankets. Whatever the reason, I knew we had to make the gingerbread mobile.

Which is just what we did last Friday night. Or attempted to do last Friday night more precisely. We had some funky dough issues. And some funky children issues. And some funky oven issues. (And some funky camera flash issues, too. It was a funky night. Thank goodness it was a funny-funky kind of night.) I should have stuck with my stand-by Gingerbread recipe (also a la Martha), but I tried the one called for in the magazine. It was near impossible to work with - but I don't blame the recipe (yet) - it could have been any of the other 10 funky factors going on at the moment. I'm pretty sure I'll be cleaning that gingerbread dough off the floors (and ceilings and cabinets) for as long as we live here. But regardless - a fabulously good time was had by all. Really - a silly, fun and very good time.

Over the weekend we iced our gingerbread.

And then yesterday, we put our mobiles together. Or rather, Adelaide and I put this mobile together. All of Ezra's mobile-destined cookies (bats, by the way) ended up in his belly (and nearly all of Adelaide's ended up there, too...if you couldn't tell from the photo above).

Then Calvin completed his. When the funky dough issues made it impossible for him to make his planned deer, he quickly switched gears....to doughnuts. It's a Holiday Doughnut mobile. It hangs over his desk now, and I'm pretty sure it's the most fabulous holiday decoration I've ever seen. A Doughnut Mobile? Really now. I'm in love.

Comments

[Meredith]

Oh I LOVE the donut mobile!! Way to go, Calvin! That's how you go with the flow!!

Great family fun is nearly always messy! That's why I now have acrylic paint all over my kitchen table and chairs! Lots of pretty ornaments, but the aftermath! OH my!!

[Suzanne]

How funny! I loved that pic too in M. It made me want to paint and buy new furniture:-) Haven't tackled the mobiles though--good for you , it looks like you had alot of fun.

[Eren]

He, he...nothing says merry christmas like a gingerbread donut mobile Calvin! Love how you made doughnuts out of funky deer. Great post as always!

[Nowheymama]

We had gingerbread *house* issues last night, resulting in Mama calling the unstable structure a "stupid piece of cr*p" (after the children were safe in bed and out of earshot) as she tried to fix the roof. Daddy: "It's the most wonderful time of the year..." But once the kids plaster it with icing and candies today, I'm sure it will be just beautiful.

[Mary Beth]

Love love love it! Very inspiring Soulemama!

[Ram in the Thicket]

I love those. Are those embroidery hoops you used?

[Village Vegan]

Lovely!!

[brandie]

okay, for realy, R asked if we could make gingerbread cookies this week, and I said I would look for a recipe...thanks dude!

i think the mobiles are totally awesome. you all rock.

[brandie]

okay, for real, R asked if we could make gingerbread cookies this week, and I said I would look for a recipe...thanks dude!

i think the mobiles are totally awesome. you all rock.

[brandie]

oops, i tried to correct my spelling error before it posted. you can erase that first one:)

[julia]

love it- these are beautiful.

[annette]

i was into the deer too, but didn't try yet. Hope you aren't all gingerbreaded out yet!

[jean]

ah, pure lovely.

[Bluebirdbaby]

I can see why that picture made its way to your board...it's lovely!! So are the mobiles your family has created!

[julie]

Oh... they turned out great!

[angela]

Mmmm...We're gonna try this! What a great idea! I bet that my lil girl's will be empty as well...She has such a sweet tooth! Then, she'll try to eat all of her brothers, I bet.
How fun! Thank you for the inspiration, yet again!

[Cath]

Oh, I love it -- Calvin must be part-Canadian in spirit. He's chanelling Tim Horton's! I think we may have to try this ...

[christina]

im attempting the gingerbread thing this weekend, but have more kids, although there will probably only be 4 that want to do it. The creations were beautiful, and Im sure that will be a memory they will always remember, and if the cookie dough is still there 20 years from now, they will remember all the love you had for them making cookies one Christmas. Yup, thats what its all about.
Christina Gomez

[Shin]

oooo how lovely. I don't get to see Martha anymore now that I'm in the UK. The girl looks like pippi

[katie]

beautiful!

[Jill]

Really fun idea!! Thanks for your beautiful website which provides lots of inspiration!

[Jade]

I also found that picture to be inspiring. Love the colors in the shot. What a great family activity to all attempt the mobile. Good stuff!

[Amy]

I fell head-over-heels for that picture too... but wasn't foolhardy enough to try the mobile for myself. Trying to decide now if your post made me feel brave enough to try it, or if it scared me away completely.

Maybe I could hang Krispy Kremes...

[bellablue]

Loving the donut-mobile!

Dave and I were just reminiscing about Steve & the Jesus-Go-Round from his "Checking Out the Lights" post last year. LOL!

[aya]

beautiful & sweet decorations!

[Rachael]

I love doughnuts!!!!

[Amanda]

Those are lovely!

[Wendy]

We tried a gingerbread recipe from one the Martha Kids (the gingerbread man wreath) and it didn't work all that well for us.

We haven't tried it since, but that awesome donut mobile might just convince me to give it another shot.

[Kim]

These are the things memories are made of. We attempted a gingerbread house on Friday. With a 3 year old and a 1 year old...not the smartest idea. But we had fun, that is what is most important :)

[Alicia P.]

I love that picture too. Enter: a plan to repaint the guest room. And oh! for a tiny triangular nook to store treasures!!! The mobiles are so very sweet. Calvin's is like a gingersnap mobile. :-)

[Nancy Cook]

I was smitten with that photo as well and have wanted to make the mobile
Nice to see that you went ahead and did it

[emily]

you and calvin would like hanukkah. donuts are an essential element to any good hanukkah celebration! seriously.

[Regina]

They are absolutely fabulous and I bet they smell good too!

[Kymm]

When life gives you funky dough, make doughnuts! I love the way Calvin solved that little problem.

[Caren]

You just need a little Homer Simpson hanging on to the mobile as well, reaching for a donut!

We're doing salt dough ornaments later this week... doughnuts would work!

[emily ruth]

doughnut mobile...so great:)

[SOULEMAMA]

Ram in the Thicket - Yes, they're embroidery hoops! I painted mine with regular craft paint. Calvin left his au naturel. A good balance to the doughnuts, perhaps. ;)

[Beth]

I also thought about Steve and the Jesus-go-round the other night while driving past a ginormous inflateable snowglobe monstrosity on a lawn here!

I love that 1) Ezra made bats and 2) he ate them all!

Beth

[julie]

True inspiration in the form of sweet reality. I love that A. is shirtless. Best way to be for big cookie dough messes. The mobiles are beautiful. Your photos have tweaked something in me that needed tweaking. I finally feel more festive - a desire in me is brewing - to join the holiday throng. Thanks!

[Chelsea D.]

That's funny- I cut it out too. I haven't gotten around to making the mobile yet, but it's on the list!

[Alicia G.]

I loved that photo from the minute I laid eyes on it in MS. The mobiles are awesome. The embroidery hoops, genius. The concentration on Adelaide's face is amazing.

[Melissa]

I cant wait to do a gingerbread house with my family when I go to my moms for Christmas. I am going all out with the prep this year!

[Joanna]

Ack! We made the same dough last Friday! It was sooo soft and nearly impossible to roll out without TONS of flour. I would be most appreciative if someone sould point me in the direction of a recipe that works! I want to make a gingerbread cottage for my son's school's Holiday Arts Fair...Thanks!!

And LOVE the mobile idea! Need to get that Martha Stewart. on Tree Fall design's blog, she posted pages from the new Marie Claire Idees. More loveliness!! Check it out

[Rebecca]

These are very cute as are all you little helpers! I have been playing with a non edible version of gingerbread houses that you might like too:

http://mypiccalilli.blogspot.com/2007/12/how-did-that-happen.html

[Veronica TM]

how fun! and all of it looks pretty lovely for having been created during a funky night.

[Donna]

Christmas bats! We always make gingerbread bats as well. And mice and stegosauruses and I think there was a lion as well this time. We have a lot of cookie cutters...The mobiles look wonderful.

[Julie]

Love the mobiles! One question - do you coat the cookies to preserve them or just eat them after awhile? :)

[Amy]

Me too!! I just can't get that photo out of my head.

I've been searching for fabric for my daughter's room. I figure once I find the "right" fabric I can pick paint. It's one of those things where you just *know* what is right when you see it, know what I mean? Well, my daughter asked for a room done with yellow and red, which I thought would be great fun. Then that Martha photo threw me all in a tizzy and I've seriously considered showing it to my daughter to see if she would change her mind about the colours - I already know I could find the right fabrics.

Have you ever tried making ornaments with cinnamon dough? I was thinking of trying mobiles/tree ornaments with that as it smells very nice and lasts for years.

[alexandra]

Love what you've done - so cool.
Also in love with Martha's gingerbread ideas - have you tried the garlic press trick to make funky hair - we did it one year - it was cute.
Wondering how you suspend everything from the ceiling - tape, hooks, something fabulous???
Thanks for sharing.

[Nina]

That's a beautiful photo, I like the scandinavian style too!