Maxwell Christmas 2011

[Angri-la]

I'm rather partial to the log grocery store. The church just looks incomplete to me.

Bah! C+ at best. I bet they had too much fun and God punished them with an imperfect Jingerbread Village.

[Witsec7]

Shit they were too cheap to buy necco wafers for the roofs. Are they gonna eat that crap?

[fundiefan]

I still can't imagine being 30 or even in my 20's and having the making of gingerbread houses be such a huge production. Sure, I've done it and under a few different circumstances. But, I always had...more. The big thing of my life the week before Christmas was not spending hours in the kitchen making a gingerbread village with my parents and siblings.

It seems such a waste of life to me.

[Witsec7]

I still can't imagine being 30 or even in my 20's and having the making of gingerbread houses be such a huge production. Sure, I've done it and under a few different circumstances. But, I always had...more. The big thing of my life the week before Christmas was not spending hours in the kitchen making a gingerbread village with my parents and siblings.

It seems such a waste of life to me.

Adult siblings getting together to spend a day making GB houses. They should all be at a pub drinking beer, playing darts and pool while avoiding family duties.

[Boogalou]

Wow, I really like that, I think it's cute. My favourite is the grocery store as well. I hope they didn't have fun making it though, that would be sinful.

[pomology]

Bah! C+ at best. I bet they had too much fun and God punished them with an imperfect Jingerbread Village.

I am FAR too amused by this. :D

[snarkbillie]

I can't decide between the Victorian House and the Grocery Store. I think they're cute. FWIW, my friends and I are getting together tomorrow afternoon to make gingerbread monstrosities. There will be a boatload of rum involved.

[Witsec7]

One year we made a GB palace, it had spires and was all rather Gaudi. After taking weeks to make this my DD and I felt like the family in Mosquito Coast. When the holiday was over we made a pyre and burned it. :lol:

[holierthanyou]

Adult siblings getting together to spend a day making GB houses. They should all be at a pub drinking beer, playing darts and pool while avoiding family duties.

Wait a second, an adult sibling made that "zoo"?

[Jessica]

Jingerbread! lol!

[FloraDoraDolly]

I think it's cute. I've never made a gingerbread house.

[treemom]

Please, please tell me I was not the only one snickering at "back door for deliveries"

[Witsec7]

Please, please tell me I was not the only one snickering at "back door for deliveries"

First thing I thought of was the old chestnut, 'when the front porch has fresh paint use the back door for deliveries'. :lol:

edited to add WTF is the JH tower???

[celestial]

Wait a second, an adult sibling made that "zoo"?

That "zoo" is hilarious for that very reason. :lol:

Best in show clearly goes to the grocery store.

[Guest Anonymous]

I quite like the cottage. The zoo....oh, the zoo..... :doh:

[bertiebean]

edited to add WTF is the JH tower???

A response in the comments says this: "John Hancock building in Chicago. Built to scale. You might call it a “modern†entry. I suppose the people in Gingerville needed some office space.

Steve"

Preeeetty sure they mean the Sears Tower. Which is now the Willis Tower, I guess. The google machine tells me that the building is a part of the John Hancock Center -now, I'm not from the area, but I'm almost positive that no one from Chicago or the surrounding area calls it the John Hancock building. There is a John Hancock building in Boston, though.

I'm guessing they latched onto that version of the name because it sounds more American.

Edit for a tag.

[terranova]

Please, please tell me I was not the only one snickering at "back door for deliveries"

:oops: Nope.

[rural juror]

I actually really like it! Especially the Chex for the roof shingles and noodles for the bush. And yes, that's the Hancock building, the Sears/Willis tower looks very different. I wonder what they'll do with it all, according to the comments, they are not going to eat any...

[gardenvarietycitizen]

I can't decide between the Victorian House and the Grocery Store. I think they're cute. FWIW, my friends and I are getting together tomorrow afternoon to make gingerbread monstrosities. There will be a boatload of rum involved.

Was gonna say. No need for cookies and boozahol party fun to be separate... just got done making a bunch of sugar cookies here (shaped like stars for the most part, with a few Canada maple leaves in there) and drinking homebrewed beer while doing it.

...I didn't make the beer though, my tenant did. He wants to brew beer in the basement, it's all good, just tithe some ;)

As for the Maxwells' gingerbread houses, I too like the market. I wonder if "JH Tower" is the John Hancock building in Chicago though, given they made it black. If so, they totally need to put the struts on the outside with either icing or licorice or something. Plus work on the tapering. But, generally they did a pretty good job of making cute buildings.

Personally for EATING I'd rather just regular cookies (and fairly plain cookies at that, I'm a sugar cookie/oatmeal raisin/regular gingerbread kinda person). The fancy houses always get the ingredients all mixed up, so you've got candy next to pretzels, too much effort to eat!! :)

[Beeks]

It's a cool village but the captions drove me nuts: "notice this. notice that. notice this."

[gardenvarietycitizen]

I actually really like it! Especially the Chex for the roof shingles and noodles for the bush. And yes, that's the Hancock building, the Sears/Willis tower looks very different. I wonder what they'll do with it all, according to the comments, they are not going to eat any...

I'm wondering if that was a TRY at sarcasm on the Maxwells' part?

Otherwise you'd think if they weren't going to eat it, they'd be going on and on about how they plan to give it to The Elderlly. But, who knows with Steve-O.

Still, looking at that zoo, there's enough crackers in there to last a good coupla birthdays at LEAST...

[PennySycamore]

First thing I thought of was the old chestnut, 'when the front porch has fresh paint use the back door for deliveries'. :lol:

edited to add WTF is the JH tower???

One more vote that the JH tower is the John Hancock Center in Chicago. It had those two antenna masts on top which the John Hancock tower in Boston does not. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hancock_tower_2006.jpg

Does anyone else think the church is rather plain and perhaps not as well-made as some of the other buildings?

[ChunkyBarbie]

I wonder if Steve made the church, it is, to put it nicely, rather lacking imagination and whimsy. It looks slapped together or like little kids made it, worse than the zoo. I do think the cottage and log grocery store are cute. I especially love the "back door deliveries," but then I am kind of a perv.

[liltwinstar]

Actually, I think their ginger village is super impressive! It's not that easy to get gingerbread to stand up like that...so yeah, I'm impressed! I think it's the most whimsical and dare I say it, *fun* thing I've seen the Maxwells do, ever.

Um, also, as an adult, I've been to a couple ginger bread house parties. Granted there's a lot of booze involved, but still, it's pretty fun!

[bionicmlle]

Am in Australia visiting for Christmas and I thank all you FJers for helping me get into the Xmas spirit!! Oh, and the Maxwell family!!!

I thought the buildings were constructed as follows:

Ghastly boring church: Steve

Practical and cute store: Teri

Fairy tale cottage: Sarah (the Moody family enjoying a winter's eve with cider and caroling inside!)

The tower: one or likely more of the boys (wth are their names???)

The zoo: Mary and Bethany, if she was there