My daughter's birthday is December 16....and I gave her a cookie decorating party when she was about 7 or 8. I made the dough and rolled out and cut a tray of assorted shapes for each kid before the party. Then rolled and cut some more while they were decorating the first tray. The kids loved it!! The mess was huge!!! LOL!!
This is the recipe I used.
Sugar cookies:
1 cup of butter
2 cups of sugar
Cream together and add
2 eggs beaten with 2 T milk and 1 teaspoon vanilla ( I like a bit more)
Mix with the butter mix
Add 3 cups flour mixed with 1/2 tsp salt....and as much as 1/2 cup more flour until it's stiff enough to roll out
Make flat patties, wrap and refrigerate for an hour or longer....
Dust board with flour and roll and cut...
Bake 375 for 8 to 10 minutes....I use parchment on the cookie sheets....if you don't have parchment....lightly grease the sheets.
The absence of baking powder keeps them from rising and keeps the cookies true to the shape of the cutter.....and makes them crisp

This is the only sugar cookie recipe I use.......no matter how many times you re-roll the dough, it never gets tough.
Great for what you are planning.
Sugar Cookies
3c flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 c butter or margarine
pinch of salt
Mix all together like piecrust dough cutting the butter into the dry ingredients.
Then add:
1 c sugar
2 beaten eggs
1 tsp vanilla.
Chill dough. Preheat oven to 375°, roll and cut cookies. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet for 6-8 minutes.
I always double this recipe and then frost and decorate.
RL`

Thank you both very much. Like you, Linda, I hope to have most of the cookies made before the girls arrive. Both recipes sound tried and true. Thanks, Gigi

Deluxe Sugar cookies:

Ingredients:
1 cup Butter or margarine
1 1/2 cup Powdered sugar
1 Egg
1 tsp Vanilla
1/2 tsp Almond extract
2 1/2 cup Flour
1 tsp Soda
1 tsp Cream of tartar
Procedures:
1 Cream butter and sugar.
2 Add egg, vanilla, almond extract.
3 Mix well.
4 Add flour, soda, and cream of tartar until smooth.
5 Chill dough 2-3 hours.
6 Roll out to about ? thickness.
7 Cut dough with cookie cutters.
8 Bake on greased cookie sheet 7-8 minutes at 375°F.

These are the best that we have tried.

Have you ever decorated your cut out cookies with paintbrush paint? My kids & grandkids love to do some this way..bet your GD's gang would too!

With a whisk-beat several eggs yokes. Divide into separate small dishes/bowls & add different food colorings (by using the 'paste colors' from the craft store Wilton's-the colors are more concentrated & nicer) and 1 Tbs water per yolk. Mix well and turn 'em loose with paintbrushes! You do paint the raw cookies before baking. The thicker you apply the yolk paint-the brighter the colors bake out!

Thank you all! Sharon, I remember using the egg yolk paint on Christmas cookies years ago! The ones that turned out the cutest were the Santa cut out cookies. After painting his red outfit on and baking the cookies, we would finish decorating them by piping the white and black frosting on for beard, belt etc. I had forgotten about the egg yolk paint. Thanks.