You can make the dough in advance and keep it in the fridge for up to 2 days before using.
Take the dough out of the fridge a couple of hours before making the cookies.
To make the cookies on the crispy side, roll them out thinner and for nice and soft cookies roll them thicker. Your baking time may vary, depending on the thickness of your cookies.
I don’t recommend using this gingerbread recipe for making gingerbread houses. The dough is too soft.