Making Gingerbread Memories

Posted on December 21, 2007 by moonbridgebooks

This last week has been filled with cookie dough. Every year I give away collections of homemade goodies to school staff, the church office, work places, my elderly friend in the nursing home as well as relatives. These days, people are thrilled to receive homemade goodies; it seems few have the time or energy to bake anymore, plus those delectables are bad for the diet.

My teenager can barely stand to boil water for her Kraft macaroni and cheese, but her little sister enjoys helping me cook and bake. It is a wonderful bonding experience as well as a way to teach math and show the practical benefits of knowing how to read and follow directions. Making Auntie K’s well-loved gingerbread cookies is a particularly good experience.

For this gingerbread recipe, developed by a chemistry teacher, a baking soda and water solution is added to a batter that has vinegar mixed into it. This combination causes the batter to bubble up as the soda-water is added, so the recipe is fun to make as well as delicious. My daughter enjoys the measuring of ingredients and I ask her questions like, “What does the baking soda do?” and “If we wanted to cut the recipe in half, how much molasses would we use?” or this year, “What percentage of one cup is one-third cup?” Oh, her teacher would be proud of me!

I would encourage all parents to allow their kids a chance to bake homemade cookies for the holidays (from scratch, not the slice-and-bake kind) because making the “old-fashioned” kind of cookies provides a fun and delicious learning experience as well as a way to make lasting memories. So start a holiday tradition of baking together, if you haven’t already. Don’t let the mess get in the way of the fun, and allow your child to be creative if your cookies need decorating.* May your baking memories be of warm delicious smells and warm loving hearts!

*see the December 10, 2005, post for the Eggnog Cookie recipe for some real decorating fun (see photo in December 22, 2006 post)

Linda Austin
“Cherry Blossoms in Twilight”
http://www.moonbridgebooks.com
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Storytelling and More

Posted on December 14, 2007 by moonbridgebooks
The other week I wrote about Pearl Harbor Day remembrances and included a little about my Japanese mother’s perspective of WWII from her Cherry Blossoms in Twilight book. It is always interesting to get a different perspective of a situation or event, which can be quite a learning experience and give us a more well-rounded view. While we listen to family or friends’ stories we might want to expand upon them by asking if their experiences were similar to that of others around them, and to describe other experiences or other viewpoints they knew of. Even with an insignificant event each person there can have a different take on what happened or come away with a different way of feeling or a different opinion, which makes it really fun when you have siblings together to discuss their early life in the family. An example of the benefit of asking questions about things outside one’s personal sphere is that I learned my dad’s housing situation when he was a little boy was quite unusual. I learned from my mother that it was common for children from poor families to only have a primary school education. By going a little beyond we can get a fuller picture, enrich the stories even more, and undoubtedly come up with even more questions. Having a lot of curiosity means you uncover more and more fascinating details, so dig in!
Linda Austin
“Cherry Blossoms in Twilight”
http://www.moonbridgebooks.com
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Kirkcare, Charities and Children

Posted on December 8, 2007 by moonbridgebooks

Today I am sore. Yesterday morning I was a parent chaperone to help take my daughter’s fifth grade class to assist Kirkcare, a local organization providing canned goods to area families in need. Many area churches collect for Kirkcare throughout the year, but during November there is a big push for foods for the holidays. My daughter’s school alone collected 4000 cans! We joined volunteers in packing new white boxes with various foodstuffs to be picked up the next day by the families. After the boxes were used up, the remaining food (a lot!) was loaded, using old boxes or cardboard trays, into trucks to be delivered to a central pantry. The fifth graders assisted with filling the boxes and then loading the pickup trucks with the rest of the food. Then we followed the trucks to another church where the pantry was kept and unloaded all, using elevators to bring cartloads down to the basement or walking down two flights of stairs carrying armloads. Even four-year-old Nathan, brother of one of the kids, was happily carrying whatever cans his little self could manage. I have never seen children so happy and eager to do work—and it was HARD work! The kids were sweaty despite the chill in the air and talked about their “rubbery” muscles, yet wanted to stay even later to help unload one more truck on its way in from a school. They had to head back to their own school, though, to catch their lunch hour and get some school work done.

Later that day, when I asked how sore the kids were feeling by the end of school, my daughter commented in a quietly serious voice that she felt good about helping. I was one proud parent. All the kids deserved big hugs for being enthusiastic helpers. There were only three older men unloading, so I don’t know what they would have done without the many strong young arms and legs. They were so thankful.

And so, due to a teacher’s thoughtfulness, a group of youngsters experienced the joy of being useful, the pride of working to provide for those less fortunate. The pain they (and I) feel from worn muscles will be a reminder of a job well done and appreciated. As Mrs. Borman says, you don’t have to look much farther than your backyard to find people who need help. During this season of sharing and caring, perhaps you will find people nearby who could use a helping hand or a cheerful face to brighten their day. Grab the kids, reach out, and share the spirit of the holidays.

Linda Austin
“Cherry Blossoms in Twilight”
http://www.moonbridgebooks.com
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