Competition at its Finest.

On Friday evening, the gang took over the Gullickson kitchen as we participated in our annual contest and constructed ginger bread houses.  The pictures below can do most of the talking.  I attempted to design too complex of a house and just as I put the chimney on the roof, the whole thing caved in!  I hadn't even gotten the chance to add windows, landscaping or my herb garden!  I was able to rescue most of the house and ended up taking third place.  Maybe this was out of pity?  Leah won the competition and Laurie (who was still working 30 minutes after the rest of us were done and already drinking beer) took second place. Jordie didn't build his typical Christmas semi truck this year, he only got caught eating candy and frosting off of Jenna's house.
After house construction, we watched videos from our seventh grade variety show and rolled on the floor with laughter.  Everyone that I was surrounded by on Friday has been a permanent fixture in my life since middle school, if not grade school.  I feel so lucky to have a close knit group of friends who I can call family---even four years after high school graduation.  I hope this never changes....

And it all falls down...

Laurie, Anne and I

Hard at work...

My house turned into a shack...held up by the trees.

Jenna and I post house construction

Post construction mess

The neighborhood of houses