It's Christmastime -- Let the Fun Begin!

About a week or so before Christmas, Aunt Catherine gave the ladies of the Mountain the Christmas gift of all time! We were all invited over to her house to erect and decorate gingerbread houses, one per household! She had made the pieces herself, and were all set to go when we arrived (now, a month past, I can testify that her gingerbread is amazing!). She had also provided copious amounts of wonderfully inspirational candy, not to mention endless amounts of coffee and hot chocolate to spur our creative feats onward. Christmas music played in the background, and as she passed out brightly-colored aprons, we knew that that day was going to be a highlight of the Christmas season.

Anna, Faith, Abby, Margaret and Reecie were the architects of the John Barry Gingerbread House; Lucy and I our own (Truman every so often snicking bits of our shrubberies); and Esther proudly took charge of the Frank Barrys' house, since Aunt Catherine had busied herself with keeping the icing ever coming for the busy workers. In a moment of peace, she and Aunt Molly walked around the counter giving words of praise and new ideas, or sat together with their coffee.

(From my journal):
The whole afternoon went off without a hitch, except toward the end the icing squeezers began to fade fast under their rigorous lifestyle, and with icing hardening in every decorating lot, the people of both the north and south hemispheres of the counter began to feel the strain of impending crustation. Hands flew, hearts pounded, candy danced in the ever trembling earthenware, when at last all was finished. The adults left for a Messiah sing-along at App so Faith, Esther, Abby and I blasted "Fun" and "Imagine Dragons" and had a dance party (and cleaned up at the same time).