With Thanksgiving barely a week past and December in its infancy, I have noticed a sizable amount of holiday jeering, not cheering. While the holidays have an unfortunate tendency to remind us how fragile our bank accounts are, how quickly we are able to gain 15 pounds and how pained the inevitable avuncular annoyances are, there is a great deal of winter - more specifically, Christmas - wonderment to be had. 

Two weeks ago, I was asked to judge the Cleveland Botanical Garden's annual gingerbread house competition, part of the Garden's 2009 Winter Show, which runs through January 3. Despite being met with the unenviable task of critiquing dozens of unique, lovingly crafted gingerbread homes, the experience made me nostalgic and elated that Christmas time is upon us. Amid the Garden's gorgeous, grand and fragrant Christmas tree and the inescapable aroma of gingerbread, the Garden is nothing short of Santa's workshop. The volume of gingerbread homes is astonishing with more than 80 entries in the adult, professional and children's categories. The latter captured the youthful delight beget by the holiday spirit, uniting creative playfulness and wonderfully unpolished creations. Polly Mecaskey's "A Train Station Christmas" illustrated this with a fanciful vision, complete with gingerbread locomotive with sandwich cookie wheels. The adult and professional entries were equally inventive and many the works of true artists. Joanne VanLunteren's "Dorchester Village" [pictured] created an idyllic town with amazing detail and a colorful character that recalled the liveliness of a Rankin/Bass stop animation Christmas special. It is wonderful. You could, and I did, spend hours viewing the gingerbread houses. It would soften even the most curmudgeonly Scrooge. 

Beyond the grand tree and gingerbread houses, the Garden has a variety of beautiful holiday-themed window displays, as well as a remarkable collection of holiday plants in the Eleanor Armstrong Smith Glasshouse. In keeping with the spirit of things, the Garden is encouraging visitors to enjoy the University Circle outdoor ice rink, which is made using a special polymer that replicates ice, without using any water or electricity. Admission is free, and skate rentals are $3, so bring the whole family. Happy holidays!