Day Three-Hundred and Thirty-Eight: Gingerbread Art

These aren't your parents' gingerbread houses.

This Jayhawk-themed space shuttle (equipped with a bag of athletic toys for speedy global delivery) was one of the dozens of award-winning gingerbread houses (and other creations) on display today at the Eldridge Extended building in downtown Lawrence.

The edible artwork was created for the Gingerbread Festival and Auction to benefit Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Douglas County. The pieces had a variety of themes ranging from patriotic to cinematic to Santariffic.

Click on any of the pictures below to see some highlights of the display. See if you can spot Snoopy's birdpal Woodstock, the Wicked Witch of the East, and the house from the recent animated movie, Up.

The pieces will be auctioned off to the highest bidders at the Eldridge Hotel Tuesday night.

In the meantime, for a small donation the public was welcome to take in a viewing of the gingerbread houses, castles, igloos, sleighs, creatures, cars and more, all side by side in a display that was as pleasing to smell as it was to view.

The festival brought viewers of all ages, and while the adults discussed the creativity and structural engineering of the pieces, the children were content expressing their approval with simple oohs and aahs.

And as the afternoon carried on, it seemed like every chold in lawrence had a chance to pass through the winter wonderland.

Well, all but one:


This boy could see what he was missing. But at least he couldn't smell it.