Bright-astic Sugar Cookies!

Summer is officially over. Although everyone around me is moaning and groaning about this abrupt end to warm weather and carefree attitudes, I am secretly relishing this changing of the seasons. Sipping pumpkin spice lattes before church, wondering around in the crsip weather. Unfortunately, my brain automatically jumps from summer to Christmas.
Honestly though, can you blame me? There's so much excitement around the holidays, I can't wait to get started.
James and I already went iceskating once this season, an experience that confirmed my worst fears- James had no Christmas adventure. He clung to the wall of the ice rink, terrified of falling on the ice. A ten year old was blazing passed him. Multiple times. I decided we would just have to go back the next Saturday. And the one after that. By the end of this winter, James will be skating circles around that ten year old.
To help boost his morale a little, I decided to bake him... sugar cookies! The perfect festive treat!



These were extremely fun to decorate! And watch my foreign exchange student pop them in her mouth one by one.
Although sugar cookies are a bit time consuming, if you feel like have a chill weekend, or your kids friends over (or your own!) for a cookie decorating party, this is the recipe to use!

Lemon Sugar Cookies:
recipe based off of: Joy of Baking



Ingredients
3 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 Cup butter
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
3/4 teaspoons lemon extract
1/2 teaspoon Almond extract

Making the cookies!
1. In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt and baking soda.
2. In a large whisking bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Next, beat in eggs, one at a time. Add the extracts.
3. Slowly mix in the flour until wel incoorporated.
4. Wrap dough into two seperate balls and put in the refridgerator for 2-3 hours.
5. After dough has firmed, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
5. Roll out dough to about four mm thick circles and use cookie cutters to create shapes.
6. Place cut out dough onto a greased cookie sheet at least two inches apart.
7. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Cookies will still be very soft directly coming out of the oven. Repeat until all of the cookie dough has been used and baked.
8. Ice cookies with any kind of icing desired. I used lemon and powdered sugar mixed with food coloring.
9. Decorate your cookies as intracately or plainly as you want! That's the most amazing part of sugar cookies! Enjoy =)