A Mom's Year

Creating a comfortable life one moment at a time

Oh My Sainted Aunts

The girls and I went to a bridal shower recently for the sweet young woman who’ll be marrying our cousin later this month. We had a wonderful time, and on the way home I thought about the aunt who hosted the shower and what a blessing she—and all of my aunts—have been in my life.

How, when I was growing up, they took me to concerts and to tea. How they gave me bridal and baby showers that I will never forget. How they painted our nursery so that it looked like a glorious summer garden. How they held my babies and chased my toddlers around at family gatherings so I could have time to eat and visit. [Read more…] about Oh My Sainted Aunts

Homemade Kettle Corn

A few of you asked for our recipe for homemade kettle corn, and here it is! I tried a couple of different methods, including one where we heated the sugar with the oil and then added the popcorn (big mess!). This is the one we liked best—it’s nice and easy.

Kettle Corn

12 cups popcorn, popped (or two packages microwave popcorn)
3 TBSP. butter
3 TBSP. water
1 cup sugar
Salt to taste

Prepare popcorn and pour into large bowl. Melt butter in a pan over medium heat. Add water and sugar and bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat. Pour half of mixture over popcorn and stir to combine. Stir in remaining mixture and add salt to taste.

 

 

Lately / Summer’s End

+ We ended the summer with Camp Week. Which meant sleeping in a tent and making lots of kettle corn.

+ Some of us ate Deep-fried Twinkies at the State Fair. Some of us went on Extreme Rides. One of us wasn’t as excited as she would have been in the past about the extra-long ride we got on the Kamikaze. It turns out the fellow in front of us was buddies with the ride operator.

+ We made a Towel Cake for our soon-to-be cousin. Next time I’ll remember to buy ribbon.

+ One last day on the river.

+ Heading off to high school.

+ And middle school and fourth grade and second grade.

+ The Bus Cake made its annual appearance. Andrew was at football practice, but we saved him a piece. (One of the nicest things about going back to school has been listening in as Andrew gives Lexie the scoop on Middle School.)

 

 

International Courage or Sheer Madness?

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These passport stamps, spotted here and here, made me laugh. Partly because they’re so cheeky, but also because they reminded me of the terror I experienced at the hands of an immigration officer the first time I traveled internationally.

I was twenty-four and heading to Austria for the Special Olympics World Winter Games. The other staffers and I had flown into Munich and made our way through the starkly modern airport to the customs desk.

The guard at the desk, a tall blond fellow, looked at my brand-new passport and then at me. He looked at my passport again and then said in heavily-accented English, “This is not good.”

I’m pretty sure my heart stopped. He shook his head and said again, “This is not good.”

I must have looked utterly panic-stricken. My mind raced as I tried to think of what could possibly be wrong and what they were going to do to me.

But then he started laughing. “Just joking,” he said. He handed me my passport and waved me on, still chuckling.

I mean, really.

Later, when I told Tim what happened, he said, “I think he was flirting with you.” I guess I didn’t pick up on that.

After that experience, I can’t imagine intentionally tweaking an immigration officer! But how about you? Would you dare?

P.S. Have you ever run into trouble at customs? What’s your most harrowing airport experience?