The miracle of the Gingerbread House

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Lawrence resident McKette Allred has started a new tradition with her grandchildren. Each year she picks a theme and gives them a little present and a book centered around that theme. One year it was trains and the family went to ride the Polar Express in Heber City and last year it was snowmen centered around Olaf the snowman from Frozen the movie. This Christmas she chose the theme of gingerbread houses and she decided to write her own story. Grandpa David Allred also became involved as he was recruited to build the frame for the giant gingerbread house. McKette sewed material to form the gingerbread house complete with bright colors to represent the candy decorations and a bright orange door. It is a dream for Grandma McKette to have her story published with beautiful illustrations into a childrens Christmas book. The grandchildren were so excited to be able to sleep in their own gingerbread house on Christmas Eve and Grandma McKette read them her original story:
The Miracle of the Gingerbread House
by McKette H. Allred
It was that exciting time of the year when the leaves fall and mother nature prepares a winter wonderland. Grandma Kette was making Christmas plans for her grandchildren, Kyston and ChanLee. Each year Grandma chose a theme for the month of December and centered family activities around the theme, especially for her grandchildren. This year was going to be really special because Kyston and ChanLee were moving to Utah from North Dakota.
Grandma decided to choose Gingerbread Houses as her theme for the Christmas festivities. The first activity Kyston made with Grandma was a gingerbread house out of graham crackers. It was a wonderful time connecting the crackers to form a little cottage. The frosting was so creamy and delicious and it acted as the glue to hold the crackers together. Grandma had purchased all types of wonderful candy to decorate the house.
The next activity was to paint some wood that had been made into a little house. Kyston was only six years old and ChanLee was just a year old. ChanLee just seemed to make a mess of everything while Kyston carefully tried to stay in the lines of the pre-printed candy designs on the craft. After many tedious hours of painting the little gingerbread home, Kyston displayed his work of art on Grandma Kette’s fireplace mantel.
The biggest gingerbread house surprise was when Grandpa David took Kyston to his work shop and they started cutting some pvc pipe into lengths of five and six feet. Kyston couldn’t figure out what Grandpa was making.
Kyston went back to the house and Grandma Kette was cutting some material and sewing the pieces together. Grandma was spending a lot of time cutting and sewing. After several days of working on this project, it was complete!
Grandpa and Grandma had Kyston close his eyes and took him in the family room. When he opened his eyes, he saw the coolest gingerbread play house. It was made out of the pvc pipe that Grandpa had cut and formed into the frame of a little house. Covering the pipe was the material Grandma had been cutting and sewing. The little house was tan with brightly colored material which formed the roof. The outside of the house was covered in big beautiful suckers and gumdrops made from the material.
The Gingerbread House was a play house for Kyston and ChanLee and future grandchildren when they would come to Grandma’s house. It was getting close to Christmas Eve and Kyston was so excited because he was going to be able to sleep in the gingerbread house on Christmas Eve. Even more exciting than sleeping in the gingerbread house, he was going to go ice fishing with Grandpa David that day.
The 24th of December had finally arrived and Grandpa and Kyston took their packed lunch of peanut butter sandwiches and lots of yummy snacks. They got in Grandpa’s truck and headed up Huntington Canyon for Mammoth Lake. It was called Mammoth Lake because the bones of a mammoth had been found at the dam beside the lake.
The canyon was beautiful with sparkling white snow which blanketed the mountain sides and the trees. Upon arriving at the lake, Grandpa and Kyston were able to get the ice tent set up on the frozen lake. The lake was covered with the beautiful snow as well.
Kyston couldn’t think of a more wonderful time than being with Grandpa David and catching the big Rainbow Trout from their little holes in the ice. Kyston and Grandpa had caught a lot of fish but they could only keep four of them so they had to keep releasing the fish back into the lake.
It was starting to get dark and Grandpa suggested that they better pack up their tent and get back for Christmas Eve Dinner. Christmas Eve was a big deal, Kyston was excited to go and eat turkey and ham with all of his family in Orangeville. The best part was dressing up as either Joseph, a wiseman, shepherd or one of the animals from the Nativity. After all, that’s what was so special about Christmas, it was the celebration of the Savior’s birth.
In their hustle to gather their fishing gear and take down the tent Grandpa slipped. The ice cracked and Grandpa fell in the lake. Kyston tried to help Grandpa get out of the lake but he was just too small. Grandpa told Kyston to run for help and that there was a cabin near by the lake. Kyston started to run into the forest but he couldn’t see a cabin anywhere.
Kyston quickly knelt down and said a fervent prayer to Heavenly Father to help him. When he finished his sweet prayer he looked up and saw a glow ahead of him in the trees. He quickly ran to the light and there before him he saw the most beautiful gingerbread house. It was lit up with the most amazing Christmas lights. It even had a heavenly glow to it.
Kyston felt safe and ran to the door knocking and pleading for help. There before him stood two nice looking men. He begged them to come quickly and help him, his grandpa had fallen into the lake and he couldn’t get him out.
The two young bachelors, Jake and Jed, swiftly ran with Kyston to the lake. There they saw Grandpa on the lake. He had crawled out of the iced lake, but seemed to be unconscious. Jake and Jed picked him up and took him and Kyston to their cabin. They were able to get Grandpa awake and warm with some delicious hot chocolate. Jake and Jed helped Grandpa David and Kyston to the truck and they were quickly on their way. Grandpa and Kyston were going to be late for the Christmas Eve Dinner but they were just grateful that they were safe and Grandpa was alive.
As they entered the family Christmas party, Grandma sighed a huge sigh of relief to see them. Kyston explained to Grandma what had happened and how he had prayed and how he was led to the Gingerbread House in the woods. Grandpa laughed and said, “Kyston, I think you are telling Grandma a story; that was an old cabin, not a gingerbread house.”
Kyston didn’t argue with Grandpa about what he had seen and experienced earlier that evening. He just waited and when he was back to Grandma’s home, alone in his little gingerbread cottage, he said a humble prayer to a loving Father in heaven and rejoiced at receiving the Gingerbread House Miracle.