The Wedding Cake

Every evening as we get prepare to wind down and get ready for bed we each take a turn sharing three things we enjoyed about our day. 
Steven's turn came and he said:
Finally getting to be able to actually call Tim my brother
The wedding
He paused a moment, chuckled a bit, and said. "And the whole cake episode."

The long anticipated wait of Timothy and Rosie Mae's wedding is now behind us. The wedding was lovely and there is a lot I could talk about the day, but for now I will talk about the cake.

It was a beautiful creation Rosie had envisioned and produced herself. It had served its purpose for the cake cutting, and having the bride and groom give each other their first bite of it. 

It still stood tall and beautiful as all the guests left after the celebration and we tackled the cleanup. 

Leaving the reception with our vehicles loaded we opted to have Steven ride in the Explorer with me, holding the cake while I drive home slowly. We had covered him in one of the tablecloths just incase the cake tips before we get home, got the cake situated, and we were on our way.

I only made it out to the end of the driveway when Steven announced the cake is already moving. He asked if he can hold the top tier to keep it from falling. I agreed since Rosie had given me instructions how she wants me to cut the middle tier and freeze it for them.

We made it halfway up the road when Steven was saying how his fingers are sinking into the cake and it's not working at all.

I told him I'd stop at the gas station and we'd reassess, and figure something out.

I turned into Exxon with a steady stream of commentary from Steven on the cake situation.

I parked, got out, and restacked things in the back to make room in front of the middle seat for this misbehaving cake, and then went to rescue the deconstructed mess from Steven's lap. The tiers had slid into what seemed like six different directions even though there were only three of them.

I was trying to figure out how to move it when I noticed a guy walking into the store. I approached him, "Excuse me, would you mind giving us a hand? We are transporting a wedding cake and it's going all kinds of wrong."

He came over and surveyed the cake. "Oh my!" he said. He assessed it some more while repeatedly saying "Oh my." Finally he reached in, wrapped the tablecloth around it, lifted it out, and plopped it back in the space I had cleared for it. 

I thanked him. He laughed and said it's been the most interesting part of his day. He went inside and I unbuckled Steven so he could go inside to wash his frosting covered hands.

I led the way opening the door for him. The restroom unfortunately also had a handle that needed to be turned so I turned my head and reached back to open the men's room door for Steven to get inside to clean up.

Leaving the store the helpful guy was on his way out as well. He once again laughed wished us a better evening and went his way.

We got home, hoisted the cake filled tablecloth out and set it into a box.

The middle tier mostly survived the ordeal and I was able to pack up some nice slices for them. 

I'll post a before picture, but leave the after picture to your imagination.

Snippets of Life with Steven

    The teeny tiny pencil that Steven has been using for way too long finally wrote its last word.

    "Friends and family, " he said, "come gather around the trash can for this solemn occasion as we say our final good bye to my little pal. We wrote many great things together, and some not so great. The memories I made with him can not be erased."

    A few dramatic dabs at his eyes and then he was off to get a new pencil to continue his school work.

~~~~~

    There were errands to run and upon leaving the last store Sharon told Steven to hop on the cart, and went running to our vehicle with him squealing with laughter the entire way.

    The few items we got were tucked into the back, the cart placed into the corral next to us, and we got in. As we were seat belting ourselves Steven sighed a happy sigh, "That was fun!" he said.

    I started pulling out of our parking spot. His voice became all chipper: "So, Sharon, same time tomorrow?"

~~~~~

    The house was quiet as Steven and I were focused on the project in front of us, when all of a sudden a peculiar noise started.

    We looked at each other and tried to listen a bit more intently. The added concentration did nothing to solve the mystery of the noise, so I got up to investigate.

    I was halfway down the hallway when Steven came flying up behind me, and grabbed my hand. "I'll go with you!" he said.

    My heart melted into a hundred little puddles at his protectiveness.

    We got to the end of the hallway and discovered the snow and ice on the roof was melting rapidly and hitting the window and outside windowsill creating the weird unexpected noise.

    He dropped my hand, we both laughed, and then returned to our project relieved that everything in our world was still alright.

Venus Flytrap

    Steven accompanied me on my grocery run this morning. As we approached the checkout lane at Aldi we admired their display of tiny cacti and then he spied it. "Look Mom!" he said in an awed whisper. "A Venus Flytrap!" 

    I looked. Sure enough, in the back corner of the display was an itty-bitty Venus Flytrap..

    He was thrilled to get to see one in real life after having read about them.

    We proceeded to continue our way to the checkout, and on a whim I reached back and got it. The excitement was real when he realized he gets to have it.

    He held it all the way home and then carefully set it where he wanted it on a windowsill in the kitchen.

    If love makes things thrive, this tiny plant should have no problem.

Bits and Pieces

     I enjoy cooking, planning menus, and working with food. 
    How ever I also really enjoy my day off on Sundays. Usually Rosie Mae will take over the kitchen then. Yesterday, Steven insisted he wants to cook for us.
    He had found a recipe he wanted to make, and with all the time he has spent in the kitchen helping me, we agreed he is capable and could be the one preparing the meal.
    He made a lovely, and super delicious risotto.
    Afterwards he told me he had not expected his arm to become so tired from all the stirring he had to do.
    I'm so happy he enjoys cooking, and my Mama's heart thrills in watching him take on challenges like this and succeeding.

~~~~~

    Our snow has melted, revealing all the twigs, branches, and other debris winter always seems to leave behind.
    The grass along the road is completely buried under tiny gravel and what ever it is the snowplows kept spreading on the road.
    I'm not looking forward to cleaning it up. I can almost feel blisters on my hands just thinking about all the effort it will take to restore the yard back to its pre-winter condition.

~~~~~

    On Saturday we had an interesting day. There were errands we had to run in the morning, and again in the afternoon. In-between, we got to attend the baby shower for Kenneth and Paige's eagerly awaited baby.

~~~~~

    I'm thinking of starting a small journal to document my ventures into Walmart. It seems something "interesting" always happens.
    Recently the cart sprayer/sanitizer guy ran after me and my cart. Apparently he hadn't gotten around to it yet and so he gave both it and my arms a quick spray.
    I was speechless, more than a little indignant, and immediately my arms itched horribly. I dashed off to the restroom to wash the stuff off.

Bits and Pieces

    For the past few weeks I have been tracking a package as it treks hither and yon across the U.S. It reached a town near us several times already and then switched course, adding stops in Illinois, Charleston West Virginia, Memphis Tennessee, and now it's stuck in Detroit Michigan.

    At this point I'm giving up on it arriving in time for Christmas. I think I'll print out the tracking history, frame it, and gift it. By now it's more interesting than the original gift would have been.

~~~~~

    I pulled in next to the cart corral and parked just as one of my favorite songs started playing on the radio. I was alone so I turned up the volume and sang along (heartily).

    The song ended and I returned to reality. Reaching for my mask I noticed a lady standing there looking at me after having returned her shopping cart.

    Uh-oh my impromptu singing session had not been quite as alone as I thought. Ah well, I can hide behind my mask. 

    I exited the vehicle and tried to lock it, accidentally hitting the alarm instead of the lock.

    A few tries and I got it shut off. I avoided all eye contact, scraped up what little dignity I had left, and hurried inside the store to get my weekly shopping done.

~~~~~

    Steven was still sleeping this morning as Sharon and I did our regular morning chores about the house. As it became light outside we noticed the sky was filled with drifting snowflakes.

    "Steven is going to be so happy," Sharon said. "He told God yesterday that he would enjoy a birthday gift of snow if He has time and doesn't mind."

    A few minutes later a beaming, newly nine year old came down the stairs, absolutely thrilled to have received the perfect birthday gift.

Raising a Baker

    I should have known she would become our resident bread baker some day. 

    From the time she was a wee little girl, Sharon loved anything to do with yeast doughs, and would always try to help me when ever it was time to bake breads.

    Roles almost seem to be reversed now, as I tiptoe into the kitchen and peek over her shoulder to see what her latest creation will be. 

    At this point I've lost count of the number of different breads, rolls, and related treats that have been produced by her capable hands.

    This afternoon she is doing a side by side comparison of cinnamon rolls. One batch she's using Pioneer Woman's recipe, while the other will be made with a donut recipe that she decided to turn into cinnamon rolls.
    I'm looking forward to seeing how they compare.

~~~~~

    There may be things I wish I could go back and do differently from their childhood years, but one thing I'll never regret is how I always welcomed them to "help" even when it slowed me down. 
    Those few years of inconvenience have paid off way more than I ever realized they would at that time.

Random Bits

     LV whisked me away for a few days. We spent our time hiking, exploring, and enjoying each other's company.

     It was such a time of relaxing and refreshment, and I enjoyed every minute.

     I only took a little over 300 pictures. I'll share some of them later.

~~~~~

     I'm writing again, and loving it. I opened files I had stored away on my computer and read everything and became reinspired to get more books published.

     Stay tuned.

 ~~~~~

      The fall colors have been spectacular this year. Combine that with bright blue skies and puffy white clouds and you really couldn't ask for a more perfect fall.

      This morning that changed and we were greeted with fog, a fast drizzle, and general sogginess.

      It may have affected Steven's mood a bit when he surveyed his math assignment for the day. Division isn't as exciting as it used to be.

      First he calculated how many days are left in the school year, and then how many days until he graduates. It all became a bit overwhelming to him.

      He came up with a solution though. "Mom," he said. "We should become Amish and once I graduate we could leave again."

~~~~~

      I'm trying a new recipe for roasted squash for supper tonight.

      I've never used patty pan squash before, but I'm looking forward to it.

Not Everything Got Checked

     My week is full. I went ahead and made a to-do list for each day of the week, dividing things up in what I hoped were manageable expectations.

    Yesterday I got all but one item checked off my list for the day. 

    I shared a little about my day on Facebook, and decided to share it here as well.

    My to-do list for the day was extra long, and when an annoying fly decided to join our day, I didn't take the time to pursue it. (It wasn't on the list, ya know.)
    Steven armed himself with a fly swatter and went on a merry chase from room to room. Rarely has a fly been bigger, noisier, or more restless, Although many attempts were made at getting rid of the thing, they were all fruitless.
    Task after task was checked off my list. The windows were washed so that it looked as if they were missing glass. I admired how clean and clear they were, and proceeded to other things.
    A triumphant exclamation arose from the living room, and Steven rallied forth, pleased to have finally put an end to the annoying fly that had managed to evade him for so long. .
    There on my clean window was the biggest, grossest splotch I have seen in a long time. What could I do? Thank him for using his fly swatter skills and then go dig out my window cleaning supplies and wash the window again.

To Our Children

     One of the things I always made sure to buy when I found out I was expecting you was a beautiful baby book. I had these great intentions of recording all your important milestones, all those fun firsts, all those little details I wanted to remember, always.

     I'm sorry to say I have failed you miserably.

     With you, my dear oldest son, I did the best. I completed most of your first year, but the rest of your book is blank.

     With each of the rest of you, I took great care in filling out everything I could those first few weeks, but after that the pages remain blank.

      The pages of your books aren't blank because I wasn't proud of you, or didn't love you, or wasn't rejoicing and enjoying each of those precious firsts and important milestones.

      I might not remember which tooth you got first, but I do remember your first word. "Papa!" I was the one that birthed you, nursed you, changed 95% of your diapers, and all four of you said Papa as your first word.

      I don't remember the day you enjoyed your first solid food, but I remember how you used to love when I brought out your little baby food grinder and how you used to sit watching me prepare it, waving your arms and kicking those little feet of yours in eager anticipation of the yummy food you were about to get.

     I don't remember the day you were weaned, but I remember how you used to tuck your foot under my chin and held the corner of your blanket as I fed you.

     I might not remember the exact moment of your first smile or laugh, but I do remember how you used to giggle when we played Peek-a-boo with you for what felt like hours on end.

     I might not remember the first book I ever read to you, but all four of you loved the Clap Your Hands book. Both your Papa and I can still recite the entire thing by heart because we read it to you so often.

    The pages of your baby books might be mostly blank, but my mind is filled with precious memories from those days. I was so busy enjoying those moments I didn't have time to pick up a pen and write them down at the risk of missing part of those moments.

    I hope someday you will understand.

    Love,

    Your mother

Learning to Drive

    This is the third round of sitting in the passenger seat as one of our teens learn how to drive.
     It's not a job I ever wanted, but somehow it became mine.

     It's interesting how siblings can be so different.
     Teen #1 sat in the driver's seat, happy to learn how to drive. Meticulous, doing everything with his intense style of concentrating. 

      Teen #2 gave herself an ulcer by stressing about driving. She wanted to know how to drive, but going through the process of learning how was not on her list of things she wanted to do. Curves, other vehicles, narrow roads. They were all a huge grief to her.

      Teen #3 is in the process now. She looked forward to the day when she would get to be the one to sit in the driver's seat. She has plenty of confidence. She had another lesson today. The seat moved forward as far as it goes, mirrors adjusted, and peering over the steering wheel she is in her element. "I'm so glad we live in an area where roads have lots of curves," she says as she happily guides the vehicle around another one as if she had been driving for years already.
      I'm glad it will be a few years before there will be a teen #4, but I can't help but wonder how he will be.

Kenneth and Paige's Wedding

     I haven't talked a lot about Kenneth and Paige here on my blog, wanting to give them their privacy, but I got permission to share pictures of their wedding day.

     The wedding was much smaller than originally planned due to the whole virus thing, but it was  still absolutely perfect.

    I'm looking forward to seeing the professional photos once they're ready, but for now I'm happy to see all the ones taken with cell phones.

Kenneth, his lovely bride, and his siblings pose for the photographer.

The ceremony, we'll wait for the professional photos to get a picture of the entire bridal party.

The bride and groom.

Tables for guests were so pretty!

The table for the bridal party.

Kenneth and Paige's first dance as husband and wife. I loved watching them.

The mother son dance was something I did purely because Kenneth and Paige wanted me to. I'm glad I did, even if it wasn't the most comfortable thing I've ever done.

My sister-in-law, Emma,  made their lovely cake. 

Funny or Embarrassing?

As a mother it's surprisingly easy to embarrass your teens. I managed to do so again yesterday, somewhat spectacularly.

Our library announced that they'll be reopening their drive through for pick ups. I hadn't even realized they have a drive through feature, but with Rosie Mae having the day off work and a stack of requested books ready for me, I decided we'd go find it.

I pulled up alongside the building, past the book drops I had known existed to a window that was set back a little father than the rest of that side of the building. I stopped and the window slid open. The friendly librarians greeted me cheerfully before going to retrieve my books.

As the librarian leaned out her window with the first stack of books, I semi contorted myself and did a weird lunge stretch out my window to get them. In doing so my right foot hit the gas pedal, revving the engine in a most satisfyingly unladylike manner.

Rosie Mae shriveled down, willing herself to quietly disappear. Her dismay heightened by the fact her boss's wife was one of the librarians.

A few more lunges to receive the rest of my books, while successfully not hitting the gas pedal and we were on our way, with me way more amused than she was.

Life with Steven

    ... is never boring.

     Sunday evening as we were all relaxing doing our various things, he was engrossed in a cookbook.

    "Mom, do you think we could make dandelion jelly?" he asked, looking hopeful as he studied the recipe in front of him.

    I looked at required ingredients.

    Water ... check

    Lemon ... check

    Sugar ... check

    Pectin ... surprisingly ... check

    Dandelions ... check, as soon as we gather from the abundance growing in the yard.

   "Yes, I'll help you make it tomorrow," I told him.

    He was excited as we discussed our plans for the following day.

    We got up yesterday to a cold mix of rain and snow. That didn't keep Steven from bouncing out of bed early, eager to start on our plans for the day, only to discover all the dandelions had shut their blossoms as they endured the weather. 

    "I'm sorry," I said. "We'll just have to wait to make the jelly until a sunny day."

     He nodded his head and said, "That's why I like days so much. You never really know what is going to happen in them until it does. It's fun finding out!"

T ~ Treasure Maps

     Steven is in a phase where he loves treasure maps. Whether it's a map someone made for him, or one he creates for one of us, most often for me.
     His maps are interesting, and he'll tag along to make sure you follow everything step by step even when you could easily find his treasure after only a glance at his map.
    His treasures vary some, but most often they're nature related. A pine cone, a fun shaped rock, a pile of twigs, a walking stick with the bark carefully peeled off, a dandelion bouquet, and any other little thing he thinks I might enjoy.
     If you ever drive by our house and see me wandering about our yard while holding a piece of paper, you can know I'm off to discover some more hidden treasure from my little man.

Picture my December

Our area got coated in a thick layer of ice that stuck around for a week. Trees looked beautiful coated like this, but there were many branches lost, including the one where we had our bird feeder hanging. We have yet to find the perfect place to hang it since losing that branch.

Steven loved spending time outside, dressing a little differently almost every time he ventured out.

The sun made the ice sparkle, which my camera did a terrible job in trying to catch that beauty. Going to town and seeing entire tree covered mountainsides glisten in the sun nearly took my breath away in the beauty of it all.

Cold mornings meant Rosie Mae had to scrape ice and frost off her car before leaving for work. She seems to enjoy it.

Our annual Christmas box from my parents arrived. The small package on the lower left hand side of the picture had a piece of paper wrapped around it, and Mom had written a few sweet words on it. I decided to wait to open it, sure that what ever was inside couldn't be as special as what she wrote on the outside. After opening it I discovered a lovely letter opener my brother Mahlon had made, and immediately burst into tears. I'll treasure it for always!

After wiping my tears I noticed this rainbow on the floor in the laundry room and had to smile. I have no way of explaining how it can appear there. It really makes no sense logically. It never did before Mahlon died, but now on days when I'm really missing him, little rainbows appear. They always make me smile, and always turn my thoughts to God in praise for His love and care.

Sharon was offered the job of being one of the chefs on the train. She accepted it, and absolutely loved it. Running her to and from the train yard kept our weekends extra full, but I was happy she got to experience this.

Christmas Day rolled around and we did our traditional 'children in front of the tree' picture. We had a lovely day even though I took an accidental nap most of the afternoon. While I was sleeping the guys decided to wash their vehicles. Not very festive, I know.

 Of the gifts the children gave each other my favorite was a beaded bracelet that Steven gave to Sharon. He spent a lot of time painstakingly making sure each little bead was in the proper place to create the pattern he wanted. All the gifts were all thoughtful, heartfelt, and meaningful.

I don't know if I'll be making another blog post before the new year rolls around, so I'll take a minute now to wish everyone a happy and blessed New Year! 

Roll and Color

    Several years ago I found a little coloring game on Pinterest. I printed it out and Steven and I played it that evening. We both loved it. He won.
    It became a favorite of his, and we went through hundreds of them, and I'm guessing it would be safe to say he won at least 90% of the time.
    It has been a few months since the last time we played this, but with it being cold and rainy outside it seemed like the perfect time to sort through my bulging files of school related papers and decide what to keep and what to pass on to someone else.
    In the process I came across a folder containing eight of these gingerbread men. Steven saw them and ran to get crayons and a dice. We sat down at the school table and proceeded to play.
    Surprise, surprise ... he still has his winning touch.

    If you'd like to play this as well you can read the instructions for this simple roll and color game, and download the cute gingerbread man, by clicking here.

Life with Steven

    I share little happenings on my Facebook, and decided I'd share a few of the most recent ones here as well.

~~~~~

We hardly ever have juice on hand unless we need it for a recipe. Yesterday a bottle of unsweetened cranberry juice appeared on the refrigerator shelf after a grocery run.

Steven eyed its sparkling beauty in eager anticipation of being allowed to drink the leftover once we used what we needed.

Steven: Can I have a little if I save enough for your recipe?
Me: I don't think you'll like it.
Steven doubtfully: Really? Short pause and then asks hopefully. Can I have a tiny taste?
I agreed and poured a small amount for him to try.
He slurped it down happily and then his eyes got big, he shuddered, and said solemnly: My tastebuds just had a horrible adventure!

~~~~~

Steven looks up from his schoolwork and says: Mom, you know how I make that writing in cursive is fun?
Me: How?
Steven: I pretend the letters are a roller coaster.
Me thinking: Oh! That explains all the squeals that were accompanying his writing this morning.

~~~~~

It started raining on the way home and I didn't turn on my windshield wipers immediately.

From the back seat comes Steven's voice: Um, Mom ... shouldn't you turn on your swishy whooshies?

I have a feeling the Kinsinger family has just found a new name for windshield wipers.

My Morning

     The grass was still wet with dew, and the morning sun had yet to rise above the horizon when I headed outside to take care of some work before it got too warm.  
      The girls were still upstairs doing their morning routine, so I didn't bother interrupting them to tell them what I'm doing.
     I finished up what I had set out to accomplish and was ready to head back inside, but first I had to wash all the grass off my feet.

    I went to fetch a pail to fill with water, only to discover I had accidently locked myself out. I checked our other doors. They were all firmly locked, as were the windows.

     No big deal, I'd simply ring the door bell and someone would let me in.     
     I rang the door bell. Nothing. I tried again, and again, and again. Still nothing. I made my rounds knocking on the doors, the windows, and then back to ringing the doorbell over and over.
         Finally after about an hour Rosie Mae lets me in, all apologetic. She and Sharon had been so busy praying for protection against this "crazed wannabe intruder" that it had taken them quite a while to come downstairs and discover that I was not in the house.
      I was glad to get inside, and the girls were relieved that the intruder turned out to be their somewhat exhausted mother.

Attic Finds

     One of the interesting things about cleaning the attic this time, other than how long it's been taking us, is watching the girls go through their childhood treasures and deciding what to keep, toss, or donate.
    We only work in the attic in the mornings before it gets too hot up there, and since everything is getting touched, and read, and reminisced over it's taking much longer than originally anticipated.
     I'm keeping most of their school writing projects that they read, laughed over, and then were going to toss. I'll treasure them for years, and I'm assuming someday they will be glad I saved them.
     I also snagged a few of their hand stitched doll clothes from where they tossed them in the trash after they were done reminiscing about all the fun they had making them and laughing at the crooked stitches they used to make.

     I have discovered it's much harder parting with their childhood things, than it was parting with my own.
   

The Verse

     "I'll have to buy a new Bible," Kenneth announced when he came home from church. 

      "What happened with yours?" I asked.

      "There's this young man who has been attending church for the past few weeks, and when he told me he doesn't own a Bible, I gave him mine."

       Part of me felt happy that he would cheerfully part with the Bible he had treasured for years already, while a selfish part of me felt sad that he would give away his good Bible we had given him.

      So this week, I went Bible shopping and bought him a new one. It doesn't have the same memories attached, but the words are the same, and I pray he will continue loving the word of God, and growing in his faith and walk with Christ.

      The Bible he had given away was the one I had mentioned in a post on my now closed, second blog.

     Here's an excerpt from that post:

    When our oldest son had a good grip on reading he could be found with his nose in a history book or the Bible. He didn't care much for fiction books even though we had shelves filled with books I had hoped he would enjoy someday.

     When he was eight we got him his first quality Bible and he was thrilled. For the next several months when ever someone stopped by our house he would wait for an opportunity and proudly show them his Bible, and then read his favorite verse to them. Proverbs 7:27 Her house is the way to hell, going down to the chambers of death.

     The first time he read that verse to someone I wanted the floor to open up and swallow me. When it didn't I simply pasted a weak smile on my face and managed to steer the conversation to more pleasant paths.

     I wrestled with what I should do. How do I tell my son not to have that as his favorite verse? And why did he choose that one to begin with? I decided not to address the specific verse and instead try to get him to appreciate some more appropriate verses as his favorite. I didn't want to in any way put the thought into his head that part of the Bible is not good.

     Fast forward seven years. He still loves reading his Bible, and last night when my husband and I were heading to bed, we paused for a moment outside our boys bedroom door where I listened to our fifteen year old son read a few chapters of the Bible to his three year old brother., and then explain what he had read. I had to blink back tears of joy as I heard our three year old say, "More, read more!" when his brother announced it was time to sleep.

    Seeing them love God's Word makes this Mama's heart glad. And so happy that I didn't squash his love of the Bible back when the verse he loved the most embarrassed me to no end.

     My prayers are that, that Bible will bless the young man who owns it now.