“Sublime Chocolate Experience”

A big decision needed to be made when we stopped at the Great Lakes Candy Kitchen a few weeks ago: Do we get the handmade candy turtles or the walnut fudge? Since the store was out of the dark chocolate turtles, we got the fudge. It came in a little white box, wrapped in wax paper, with a small wooden knife. The top of the box was stamped with the name of the store in bright red letters. We cut little chunks out of the half pound, eager to see if it tasted as good as it looked. No one was disappointed when we enjoyed a little bite during our visit. The fudge lasted beyond lunchtime, but not much longer!

This very informative sign, let us know exactly where we were! ❤️

Due to restrictions, we were not allowed to enter the quaint-looking store but ordered from a walk-up window.

Many more bears were there to greet us on the other side of the building. Bear tracks lead us to a picnic table and a play house with a toy register.

It was a fun treat, and after each delicious bite, no one felt even a tiny bit of guilt!

Don’t wreck a sublime chocolate experience by feeling guilty. ~Lora Brody

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A Splendid Time!

Laura & Michael

As I tried to balance my plate in one hand while eating morsels of tasty treats, I wondered if it was starting to rain. I thought I was doing a good job of keeping eye contact with the person who was talking, when it seemed like a little raindrop passed by and missed my plate. I politely nodded and listened as the conversation went on. I waited for another drop to fall. When I didn’t hear, feel or see one, I thought it must have been my imagination. Plus, I could not picture rain falling on such a decent day in August. The sky had been beautifully bright and blue with hardly a wisp of a cloud the entire day.

My husband popped in on our conversation, and asked, “Was that a squirrel?” He got hit on the head with something. The four of us looked up, but since it was getting dark, we couldn’t see any animal hiding in the very tall oak tree. When we looked down, we saw evidence of acorn shells scattered about.

“Oh, that’s not a good sign,” we heard a lady say. “If the squirrels are acting so crazy about acorns already that means it’s going to be a cold winter.” Somehow the talk of winter made us scatter and mingle. I wandered over to the table and tried to decide if I wanted more shrimp cocktail, veggies & dip, meatballs, cheese & crackers, a wrap, or my favorite:  a delicious bit of roast beef piled on toast and topped with a tad of horseradish. I took my favorite, and while I chewed, I stared at the cupcake tree stand. Since the cupcakes were chocolate, I knew I had to have one. The frosting looked like it was some sort of marshmallow that had been whipped into a bouffant.  It reminded me of a hairstyle from the 60s. I plopped one on my plate and it didn’t last long there!

There were high tables neatly arranged about the yard with smatterings of other conversational areas. Each table was decorated with colorful bouquets of flowers that the hostess arranged in a most attractive fashion. I headed toward the table with the comfy chairs and umbrella just in case the squirrels decided to bomb us again.

Laura was holding Michael’s little nephew. I got up close, looked at his little nose, peaked under the blanket and saw his tiny feet. His left hand was bunched up into a fist and rested on the bottom of his chin as if he was in some sort of deep thinking process. I wondered what little babies dream about.

“Do you want to hold him?” Laura asked me. I hadn’t held a baby for years. When people ask me if I want to hold a baby, I almost always say no because sometimes it makes me nervous.  But that day was different. I said yes mostly because that little baby and I are going to be connected with and be a part of the same family.  Plus, he is one cute baby who didn’t make me feel fidgety!

As I sat with the little one and patiently waited for him to open his eyes, I looked around the yard.  Even though a lot of us were meeting each other for the first time, the conversations felt like we had known each other for years.

When Michael asked for our blessing to marry our daughter, I knew it would be the start of new  beginnings for us. For me it means getting to be the Mother-of-the-Bride, plus I am looking forward to being a Mother-in-Law!  Even though Michael has seemed like a member of our family for quite some time now, it will be great when we get to officially welcome him to our family next year when Michael and Laura tie the knot.

Before this event, I didn’t even know that engagement parties existed.  An engagement party is a nice way to start off all the events that come with planning a wedding and a good way to meet each others immediate families.  I’m so glad I had such a splendid time at my first engagement party!

What a great favor God does to those He places in the company of good people! ~ St. Teresa of Avila

Valentine Surprises

The day’s clouds hung thick and gray.  The snow piles were old and melting and blended in with the color of the sky.  My mood mirrored the day.

I missed my Dad and Mom on that Valentine’s Day.  It was my first Valentine’s Day away from them.  I was 20 years old and had moved away the previous summer.  I had only moved a mile away!  That didn’t keep me from feeling homesick.

I remembered other Valentine’s Days, when Dad would come home from work with two surprise Valentine hearts filled with chocolates:  one for me and one for Mom.  Each year, the size of the box of chocolates grew bigger as I did.  The cellophane wrapper crinkled to reveal a little plastic rose decorating the top of the box.  The inside smelled like a combination of paper and cocoa.  The thick white wrapper that covered the chocolates and the small brown papers that held each piece were carefully kept in place even after I tasted each delicious piece.  I saved the box for months just to open it, remember how it had first smelled and listen to the paper crinkle as I played with and folded up all the little papers.

Now that I was all grown up and on my own, I didn’t expect a surprise Valentine heart filled with chocolates.  Though it was difficult, I secretly said good-bye to my Dad’s tradition.

After dinner I got busy washing the dishes, and the telephone rang.  It was Mom.  She asked me if I had gotten the mail.  I hadn’t because I had forgotten all about it.  I had been thinking about childhood Valentine’s Days.

After chatting for a while, we hung up. When I went out to the front porch to get my mail, I was so surprised and happy when I saw the very big Valentine surprise heart sitting on my pile of mail.  That was a day when I really appreciated all the love and kindness of my parents.

It’s nice to still be a little kid in your parents’ eyes, no matter how big you get!