Tag: Ed

Posted on

Cupcakes Help

Saturday morning, Emmy burst into tears. Ed was going to a weekend bachelor party, and Emmy just couldn’t understand why she couldn’t go with him. Or why there wasn’t going to be cake at the party. After all, it isn’t a party without CAKE! I stopped the flow of tears with the promise that while Daddy was gone, we would make cupcakes. PINK cupcakes. Now, I know what you’re thinking: Pinkalicious is the perfect book to read when you’re baking pink cupcakes! And you’re right, but we’ve already done that. So I wanted to find a different book to read with the girls.

Mr. Putter & Tabby Bake the Cake (Mr. Putter & Tabby) Mr. Putter & Tabby Bake the Cake by Cynthia Rylant

After we waved goodbye to Ed, we got in the van to take a trip to the library. We had some books due anyway. We have really been enjoying Cynthia Rylant’s books about Mr. Putter and Tabby, and so when Lily found this book, it seemed perfect for a cake-baking day. Mr. Putter wants to find the perfect Christmas gift for his neighbor, Mrs. Teaberry. Mrs. Teaberry like nothing better than a good, heavy fruitcake at Christmastime, so Mr. Putter resolves to make her a light, airy cake. A cake that “would not break a person’s toe.” One problem…Mr. Putter doesn’t know how to bake a cake! I just love reading the antics of Mr. Putter, and so do the girls!

After we read a short stack of books, we set out to bake.

Cupcakes may not be a perfect substitute for Daddy, but they sure help when he’s gone!

<>

Posted on

Sticky Little Hand Prints

Late last night, the girls were asleep, and while I was in the master bedroom, I heard some furious whispers coming from the stairwell. I crept out to investigate, and saw no one there. I knew it had to be Ed making those noises, but at the same time I wondered what in the world was making him talk to himself?

As I wandered downstairs, Ed soon appeared with a spray bottle of Formula 409. Now I knew exactly what he was up to. There were several sticky little hand prints on the wall going up the stairs, and Ed had spotted them.

About a year before Ed and I were married, I brought up the idea of adoption. After having breast cancer, chemotherapy, taking the drug Tamoxifen for five years, and then having huge, orange-size uterine fibroids removed along with part of an ovary, I feared that I wouldn’t be able to have children. Ed and I agreed that if it turned out that I was infertile, we would go the adoption route.

When Ed and I started trying to have a baby, it didn’t take long before we found out Lily was on her way. I was unable to have my regular mammograms when I was pregnant and breastfeeding, so we didn’t try to have our second baby until I had that mammogram and everything checked out okay. Emmy was on her way three months after my mammogram. My fears, obviously, never came true.

And so when I saw those sticky hand prints on the wall last week, I was happy to be in my own, toy-strewn, chaotic house with sticky hand prints on the wall. This is the kind of house I’ve always dreamed of having. I resisted cleaning off those sticky little hand prints. A house full of little ones with sticky hands and mouths, runny noses, and giggles is exactly what I want.

Being sentimental about those sticky hand prints didn’t cause me to stop Ed in his tracks, however. Eventually, I would have gotten out the Formula 409 myself. Sticky hand prints on the wall can only be sentimental for a limited time. Plus, I have a rule…never interrupt your husband when he is in cleaning mode, or he might never be moved to clean again!