I Suck At Gingerbread Houses

Last night, Karen and I went to my favorite sister-in-law's (Janine). On the agenda for the night: the annual tradition known as the gingerbread house. Now, I suck at gingerbread houses. We had originally planned to make the gingerbread house on Sunday, but thanks to mother nature and the mounds and mounds of snowfall, the annual tradition was rescheduled for yesterday.

For anyone curious, the annual tradition of the gingerbread house with my in-laws apparently started way back in 1955 by Karen and Janine's grandmother (commonly referred to as Nana). And like most things with my in-laws... if it's tradition, it has to be done. (It's like that movie, "The Ten Commandments" where Rameses says "So let it be written, so it shall be done." Same idea.)

Needless to say, Nana's grandchildren have continued the gingerbread house tradition on their own, even though the tradition is older than all of Nana's grandchildren and their respective significant others (with the exception of possibly one).

This year, however, the gingerbread house tradition was slightly different. In the past, there would usually be a family gathering to decorate the gingerbread house. Karen's relatives from Lowell would come down to the South Shore... even though there is a lot to like about Lowell. Her cousin (Jonathon) and his significant others would sometimes come down from what I refer to as the Booneylands of Massachusetts to also help decorate the gingerbread house.

With Nana's house no longer acting as the focal point for family gatherings, it seems like the traditions are changing. Thus, the annual gingerbread house tradition was small this year. The tradition involved only Karen, Janine's family, myself... and Janine's friend (Gretchen).

(The picture below is of the gingerbread house.)


For anyone curious, Gretchen was not exactly initiated into the gingerbread house tradition. She just happened to have stopped by and watched my favorite niece (Kaleigh) and nephew (PJ) decorate the house. And she may also have had a couple of limoncello drinks in the process.

Anyway, last night was a fun time. Like most gingerbread house traditions, I basically sat on the sidelines and watched. There are specific ways the gingerbread house has to be assembled and decorated. So, it's best not to mess with the rules.

For anyone curious, Kaleigh did an amazing job decorating the gingerbread house. She was quite focused on decorating the house and would probably be still decorating the house if given more time. She's artsy that way.

On a random note, I found out that Janine has blue eyes... and not just the color of her pupils. Near the sides of her eyes... is blue. It was interesting. I never knew that.

All in all, it was a good time.