Maawwm's 40th Birthday

On Saturday Homie and I went to the Temple. The kids were not being very helpful in getting their Saturday jobs done before we left. I was exasperated. I kept threatening to not go. The kids just kept telling me to hurry up and leave. I know they like it when we are gone. They watch Gilligan's Island and eat crackers on the couch the whole time. We always come home to a disaster. Actually, I guess they trash the house first. then, when they can't do any more damage, they sit down and watch Gilligan the rest of the time. Anyway, I'm off on a tangent ....

Where was I?

So, I was dreading coming home to the mess. When we opened the door, I was surprised to find a thick black curtain of black crepe paper hanging in the doorway. Immediately I prepared myself to face the havoc that must have happened inside the rest of the house. As I crossed through the streamers, all the children were clustered together wearing their formal black attire and holding a dozen roses. They yelled “Happy Birthday!” then eagerly showed me what they had been doing the whole time we were gone. The house was very tidy and profusely decorated with black balloons, streamers, flags and other black decor. The table was set with “Over the hill” printed place settings. Yikes! I thought “over the hill” was for age 50, but nobody else seemed to think they were rushing things. I had no idea this was going to happen. Usually some child slips, or I find evidence of an impending surprise. This time they did a really good job of keeping it all a secret! Homie had done all the shopping with a couple children a few nights before. They had a really great time doing it together.

The funniest part was the cake. I had requested a lemon cake, and had told Peach how to make it. It involved a glaze rather than frosting. (I’m not a big frosting fan). Apparently she and Kaylee had a large misunderstanding about it. The details are evasive, but the cake ended up in a billion chunks in a bowl. To fix the problem, and to turn it into a humorous thing, KayBee carefully put saran wrap over the top of the cake and then put a topping of saltine crackers and grated cheese on top of that. She tried to make it look like our favorite potato dish (a.k.a. funeral potatoes.) When she presented the cake to me, I was shocked and disgusted. (I didn’t know about the protective saran wrap layer.) I did not think it was funny, nor could I understand how KayBee and Peachy who are both decent cooks could even think about putting grated cheese on a lemon cake. I was trying to smile and be politely excited, while thinking un-polite thoughts in my head! They kept watching my face and waiting to see what I would do. Much to my pride, and their disappointment, I did not show any sign of ingratitude. KB finally revealed her silliness and I was greatly relieved – both in taste and reassurance in my daughters’ cooking sense. 40 black candles were gleefully placed in the mash, and a pyromaniac’s delight burned bright. I’m glad my age could put on such an impressive display for the children to enjoy.

All’s well that ends well. We finished the evening by stuffing ourselves silly on cake and ice cream. It is funny how one day can make such a big difference in a person’s life. Homie and I had a delightful time doing sealings at the Temple. On two occasions, I felt an interesting feeling of happiness and excitement as the ordinances were being peformed. It was a nice time to remember the promises that we made as a couple, and to be reminded of the blessings that are ahead of us. Then to come home to a fun party was the glaze on the cake. It did my heart good to realize that my family does love me, and that they are capable of doing things without me and my wooden spoon.