2013 National Gingerbread House Competition

The Omni Grove Park Inn

Asheville, NC

This was the twenty first year of the gingerbread house competition. It was started in 1992 with a small group of gingerbread houses built by community members. It was another way to celebrate the holiday season and no one expected it to happen again. Now it has become one of the nation's most celebrated events. The competition is fierce and the caliber of judges is astounding. 

Although it is billed as a gingerbread house competition, the winner this year were animals. A pair of pandas eating bamboo was the grand prize winner. This creation traveled from Wisconsin for the competition. It was very hard to get a good photo as it was in a glass showcase with mirrors on the back.

All items on the entry must be edible except for the base it is built on. Many were made of gingerbread and covered in fondant while others were very much bare gingerbread except for the decorations. So enjoy the show and maybe put it on your calendar for next year. It starts the week before Thanksgiving and runs through New Year's Day. There is a short period of time - I think the week of Christmas - that the top winners are taken to NYC for TV appearances.

Santa is flying in on his Canadian Goose.

Can you see the mice in the clock? The clock weights looked like pine cones.  

This was a very simple A-frame gingerbread house and then they added all the sugar work.  The snowflakes on the roof were a work of art.

And what is not to love about a trip to the amusement park on the boardwalk? 

I think this was one of my favorites. The title was "I Should Have Taken the Sleigh". Can't you just see Santa and the misses zipping around in that sporty red car?

This one was called "Mall Santa". What a familiar scene these days. 

 The details on this piece were incredible. You could stand for an hour and not see everything. Each book on the shelves was individually done. The cards on the mantle painted. There was a worn spot on the braided rug. Look at the stones in the fireplace. Talk about patience!

And one of my favorite. The simplicity of the scene is wonderful. It is called "Gingerbread in G Minor".

Happiness is Asheville

by our return guest blogger, KPTography

Anyone who knows me, or knows of me, knows that Asheville, North Carolina is my happy place. Even my students can tell you that I live and breathe the Biltmore Estate. I make no bones about it. I love the Biltmore. I love how it looks, I love what it was and what it is. I love the family history. I love the estate!

This summer I got to go on a daddy/daughter trip to Asheville. This trip I actually spent more time off the estate then I have in all of my time visiting Asheville. I now have proof (besides my own opinion) that Asheville is a very happy place to be.

I love animals. I can even love a snake as long as its behind glass with a very secure lid. This trip I visited the Western North Carolina Nature Center. I was totally excited because I was going to see my very first bear and wolves (yes the non-Twilight type). Dad and I went through the reptile house (a bit quickly I might add). We wandered over to the River Otters. They turned out to be camera hogs. That’s when I heard the snuffing. I followed my ears until I reached a very large fenced in area and there he was. A big black bear that was not playing so nicely with his enclosure mate (I think the bear was an only child and I could relate to that!)

This ranked right up there with finding Pez world with my mom. I followed this bear that didn’t want his picture taken attempting to get the perfect shot. I had just about given up when it happened. He plopped himself down against a tree, started scratching his butt and then grinned like nobodies business. I wasn’t sure if I had seen this correctly but he did it several times. I decided the bear was happy because he was in Asheville. I know I got so excited about the grinning bear I completely forgot about the wolves!
 
Dad and I also spent one morning in downtown. I love the stores in downtown but this was the first time I had experienced downtown without a crowd. As I walked around I noticed that all of the merchants had water bowls for the dogs outside their stores. Even if they weren’t a pet store there was a fresh bowl of water for a pooch in need. Its no wonder all the pups in Asheville are friendly and happy. They know that they are welcome to come in for a visit.

The other day I was reading the news online and came across the article called The Happiest States In America In One Map (www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/02/happiest-states-_n_3696160.html) in the Huffington Post. The only town listed on the eastern seaboard was Asheville! Something I already knew but was very happy to see that I had been correct.

I will always love Asheville because of the Biltmore Estate but it’s so nice to know that the animals are happy there too!