Gingerbread Village A Sweet Way to Kick Off Christmas Season

It takes Janet Gustafson an untold amount of dough, 50 pounds of frosting and five months to complete the gingerbread villages she makes every year -- and she doesn't even get the pleasure of eating the results.

But what she does get is the joy from seeing a child's face light up at the wonder of it.

"It's just something I love," Gustafson, 67, told Patch during a tour of the village at her home Saturday, Dec. 3. "The children love [it]. People are happy when they live my house and I think that's worth everything."

Thought Gustafson has been building gingerbread villages for the past 32 years, she has been making the special effort in Flossmoor for the 16 years, said family friend and Saturday tour guide Nancy Lipschutz.

This year is also the first year the sponsored a trolley ride from at to Gustafson's home to see the village -- which drew about 500 people, officials said.

The gingerbread village measures about 12 feet by 6 feet and is complete with hundreds of blinking lights and detail, down to Santa making a list of good little boys and girls to an ice arena reminscient of .

Gustafson also included little representations of .

It was the first time seeing the creation for Tasha Ward and her 10-year-old son, George.

"It's really, really nice that she opened her home this way," Tasha Ward said. "I love it, every little detail. It is really something to see."

George said he wouldn't have minded tasting the gingerbread -- but considering the Gustafson started making the village May 1 and finished Nov. 1, that probably wouldn't have been a good idea.

Anyone who would like to see the gingerbread village can call the village of Flossmoor at 708-798-2300 to schedule a tour.

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