Monday, January 20, 2014

Homemade Ice Cream

I don't know that a food can be a tradition, but if it can ice cream is one of ours. Grandpa Len always had ice cream (maple nut specifically) and much to Grandma's head shaking you didn't need to finish your dinner to get some. After all, ice cream just fills in the cracks after you're full. Terry and Becky got Lindsey the cutest vinyl design they are putting on a mirror for her. I will see if she will send me a picture. {Yay!  She did!}


 On his birthday all of us were too full for dinner and we still went out for ice cream, it was only right after all. 

Saturday I wasn't even thinking about FHE when I said aloud, to no one "we need to make ice cream and talk about family. Call Alisha and see if you can borrow her ice cream maker"  Me being me, I had to ignore that but when I thought the same thing as the Sacrament was being passed I decided to listen and see if I could borrow their ice cream maker.  Being as awesome as she is we made arrangements to pick it up Monday.

Before I dumped in all the ingredients (well, except for the egg because I forgot it -- oops) I had the kids taste them individually.  With the exception of sweetened condensed milk there wasn't anything that would get listed as wonderful.  Even the SCM wasn't wonderful, just better than the rest.  At the same time nothing was horrible by itself either, no tongues had to be cut off from disguistingness, and only a few sour faces at the vanilla extract.  After all the ingredients were mixed together we tasted it again.  Nothing overly exciting, taste had improved some but no one wanted to do more than stick their finger in and lick it.

The ingredients are us, individual family members.  Alone we are not nearly as exciting as we could be, we have not met our potential.  Even when we're together as a family all in the same house (or ice cream tin) things are just kind of 'meh at best.  It isn't until you pour the ice and rock salt around the outside and start it churning that the concoction turns into something amazing and desirable.  The sweet liquid has turned into a family!  As the ice cream was freezing and we had dinner I wanted everyone to think of what could be our ice and salt.  It was important to me that we focus on things to do instead of not to do and I wanted everyone's input.

We decided that as a family we will:

  • Compromise {Charlet's example was if I say her curfew is 9 and she wants it to be 10 that she can stay out until 9:30.  *sigh*} 
  • Do everything. That may seem overwhelming, Kaede had a hard time finding the words for what she wanted to say but she mentioned "do everything" in supporting each others activities, doing all of the chores they're suppose to and I decided that "do everything" was pretty accurate.
  • Laugh.
  • Read the Scriptures and have family prayer daily.  
The last one was my contribution.  I had looked for a quote that lists out promises that come from daily scripture study as a family and I couldn't find the one I was looking but I did find this quote from L. Tom Perry in October 1993 General Conference.
I promise you that daily family prayer and scripture study will build within the walls of your home a security and bonding that will enrich your lives and prepare your families to meet the challenges of today and the eternities to come.

"I promise" coming from a General Authority during Conference isn't simply a word choice, it is a phrase that grabs my attention and makes me listen. my word shall not pass away, but shall all be  fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the  same. Doctrine and Covenants 1:38 Promises that come from the Lord usually (always?) have 2 parts.  The part we do (or don't do) and then the blessings or consequences.  From Moses's time, look at the serpent (do) and be healed (blessing). They are throughout the scriptures as well as my life.  After reading the do part which as usual is fairly straight forward, until it gets hard and even then it's still fairly straight forward (daily prayer and scripture study) and realizing the blessings are tailored to exactly what my family needs are how could I add anything else onto the list?

It also doesn't specify anything about "immediate family" only, so we're inviting other family to join us across the miles.  Started reading the Book of Mormon out loud, dividing the verses between all of us, one chapter a night beginning January 20, 2014.  Days the kids are at Paul's that night they usually end up over here for part of the day anyways so we will read then, making up days that they don't make it over the next night.

There will be times that things seem too busy, our lives are "too full" but just like Grandpa always said "there's always room for ice cream" and to make our ice cream we have a guideline that has been given to us to follow.

~Heather

2 comments:

  1. Heather, I was just scanning back through your blog (for no real reason what so ever) and came upon this one. I have been really struggling this independence day weekend as there have been many changes in my extended family in the last 3 years.. but in the last year in particular. I found myself very depressed and frustrated at the end of the day Friday because our extended family is a real mess. And by extended family, I mean my close family. My mother, my two young men who still live at home, 17 and 21, my married daughter who was home for a visit while her husband works far out of town for the summer, my niece and her son who I raised and am helping raise, my nephew who I raised and his 4 kids. Interestingly there were no spouses there. My husband is working out of town, my daughters husband is out of town, my niece is unmarried, my nephew is going through a separation and divorce, my father passed away 3.5 years ago. I have struggled ,HONETLY< the head of household these days.... to keep tradition alive while making some needed and substantial changes. That night, I came to really realize how negative the whole bunch of them are and it broke my heart. I found myself thinking as I dished up the annual Grandmas Home Made Ice Cream... that I just didn't even care about IT anymore because no one could find anything right or good in the day and I couldn't figure out why I even kept trying to get this bunch together. You are right, it is the people who make the ice cream and that was what was wrong with it.. the Ice cream was just as spectacular as ever, but the vibrations around it are going to have to change or implode. Thank you for your insights and understanding of deep things.

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  2. Bels, I am sorry to hear things are so rough right now. I hope that you and your family come out the other side of this struggle stronger and happier than before. You are a strong, amazing women and I miss our chats.

    ~ H

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