I just spent the last two hours decorating gingerbread men—as part of my job. Yeah, it’s rough.

For the past several years a number of us in Equity Enterprises (the department in which I work) volunteer a few hours in the Betty Crocker Kitchens making cookies, peanut brittle, bonbons and caramel corn. The first shift starts baking at noon; the second shift begins at 2:00 and finishes up any baking or decorating that needs to be done; and the final 4 p.m. shift takes all the finished goodies and carefully packages them up into holiday tins. The tins are then donated to the Courage Center, who sells our baked goods as a fundraiser for their organization (BTW: I think the dates are incorrect on their site. The bake sale is Thursday, December 6th and Friday the 7th). Without fail, our homemade treats always sell out.

Needless to say, spending part of your workday baking cookies is a pretty good time. There’s holiday music playing, snacks to munch on, and an overall feeling of goodwill that pervades the room. Plus, it’s fun to joke around and get to know people you don’t work with on a regular basis. At one point a food stylist actually complimented and copied (!) one of the gingerbread men I decorated. Now that’s what I call a Christmas miracle.