Gingerbread House 2009 - Step Three

Now for the really fun part - decorating! This is the step that everyone gets involved with.



At first, it is like a blank canvas. People pick different parts to work on, bigger ones help littler ones to squeeze the icing out of the bags.

Sometimes people get silly working on a gingerbread house.



The condo is definitely shaping up!



Everyone is pleased with the finished product!



Front view:



Back view:



If you wish to attend our house to receive a free gift, and also hear about some great time-share opportunities in this condo, please call now. Units are selling quickly!

Gingerbread House 2009 - Step Two

Carrying on with our gingerbread house....

David mixes up a double batch of chocolate fudge to act as a foundation, and sets one of the boxes into it:



Of course, this must be checked with the level:



Then the remaining two boxes are placed on the top, with "floors" between each level.



A roof is put on the top, and... ta dah! The gingerbread condo!!



Stay tuned for decorating....

Gingerbread House 2009 - Step One

It is our tradition to create a gingerbread house each year. It sits on the piano, and greets anyone entering the schoolroom with a lovely ginger-y smell (quickly followed up by the tree's lovely pine-y smell - ah.. the smells of Christmas!). This year, David felt a little tired of the typical gingerbread cottage style house, and felt moved to make something, well, bigger. Here are the first steps of this year's creation:

The gingerbread is mixed up, rolled out, and cut out. Here the three-headed penguin cookie jar (a silly gift exchange windfall, loved by some in our home) watches over the preparation.




After baking, it is "trued up" by David. He recuts the baked edges (which spread a little in the oven), and checks with his set square.

Then the assembly! David is sticking walls together with icing:



Of course, it needs to be checked with the level:



The result of the first night's work: three boxes

Happy Birthday Great-Grandma!

We have the blessing of having Great-Grandma in our lives. She is the children's Grandpa's mother, and she just turned 90! We had a little birthday celebration for her at Grandma and Grandpa's house with some of the extended family.



Great-Grandma is a war veteran, she served during the Second World War in England. Sometimes if she is in the mood, she will tell us a bit about what that was like.

I made the cake, and I was pretty pleased with how it turned out. It was a 3 layer chocolate cake, with a whipped cream icing, and chocolate glaze. Very yummy. This is my favourite picture of the cake because of the background!