This year's Christmas cookie round-up:

1) Toba Garrett's Butter Cookies in heart and star shapes, decorated liberally with green and red sugar sprinkles, cinnamon red hots and non-pareils.

2) Gingerbread from Christmas Baking with SusieJ. This year, for the first time ever in my cookie baking career, gingerbread cookies will take the shape of actual gingerbread men. I bought a great copper cutter from World Market, prompting Brainiac to demand to know if cookie cutters "always cost this much." Men.

3) Holly Cookies, because no holiday is complete without at least a little marshmallow.

4) Pizelles, the anise kind, although without seeds. Maybe some chocolate, too.

5) Chocolate chip, from the back of the package and with a little Da Vinci Hazelnut syrup.

6) Thumbprints, with candied cherries - the old version.

7) Chocolate Crinkles, because they're festive, fun and easy.

These are the cookies that say "Christmas" to me, the absence of which I'd miss. Sure, if supplied with endless free time I might delve into marzipan (which I adore), tea cakes, or even those peanut butter cookies garnished with chocolate kisses. For now, though, this is enough. My house smells wonderful, my counters are a mess, my sweater is covered in flour and I am happy.