Lessons from Pie Crust

This weekend as I was unthinkingly pouring enough strawberry pie filling for two crusts into one and then bailing it out, I was reminded of a miracle I witnessed back at Thanksgiving.

I volunteered to make the pumpkin pies for Thanksgiving dinner at the in-laws. I love pumpkin pie, especially my Grandma's recipe, and I have made the filling many times. The funny thing is that I had never really had much experience in making the pie crust. The filling is so good in and on a variety of desserts that the pie crust part was never a problem. However, if you are going to bring pumpkin pies then they ought to be in a pie crust. I decided to make a "real" Grandma's pie and asked my dad for her pie crust recipe. He found the recipe and then suggested I contact one of his sisters to get the details on how to make the crust.

After getting the instructions as well as the "what-not-to-do" notes, I figured that I had everything that I would need. Kevin suggested that I try making a crust Tuesday night to see how it turned out, so that night after work I made my first attempts. Nothing worked out well that night and the fact that we even ended up with a crust was thanks to my husband’s patience and his willingness to make a crust out of my failed attempts. Many tears and lots of frustration went into Tuesdays crusts, and I’m sure we were both thinking that making four more crusts on Thursday was going to be a challenge.

Wednesday night I slept very well and I woke up on Thanksgiving in high spirits. Kevin was getting the laundry started at the laundry mat while I braced myself for another round of pie crust. This time I started with a heartfelt plea for heavenly help and then I set to work. It went perfectly. The dough was the right consistency and held together like it really wanted to become a crust. When I went to put the crust into the pie pan it went in without crumbling into hundreds of pieces and didn’t even have a crack. By the time Kevin made it back to the apartment a beautiful pie crust was ready to bake and I almost had a second one finished. I am pretty sure there must be pie making angels in heaven. I kind of wonder if my Grandma was there overseeing the process since it was her recipe that I was trying so hard to make. They turned out flaky, golden brown, and yummy.

Lessons learned? 1. Sometimes, well most of the time, heavenly help makes even the hardest things easier. 2. Sleep is a must. Never make pie crusts on a lack of sleep! 3. If at first you don’t succeed, try again on a different day when life is brighter.

A Hospital Miracle

Yesterday we were blessed while we served. Kevin's sister and her husband were in the hospital waiting for their first baby to be born. They had been there for awhile and were a bit bored, so they called us late Sunday afternoon to see if we could bring them some DVDs that they could watch to pass the time. We put together a collection of DVDs and headed for the hospital which is near our home. Admittedly, hospitals make me nervous and thinking about our own baby that is on his/her way hasn't helped to lessen that nervous feeling. As we walked into the hospital everything was very quiet and calm, which is in contrast to all of my hospital memories which are very chaotic. We found our way to the information desk without a problem; Kevin has a much better sense of direction than I do, which is a very good thing. We made it up to the Labor and Delivery unit and to the room where the expectant parents were waiting. It was nice to be able to visit with them for a few minutes and to hear about their experiences leading up to going into the hospital. Before we left, we offered to bring some french bread pizza later for dinner.

While making the pizza that evening, Kevin texted to make sure that our brother-in-law was okay with the pizza toppings. The response text said, "I think we are about to push, hold that pizza delivery!" We waited for about three hours before texting again to see how things were going. Shortly after, we received a call from Kevin's mom, now "Grandma Black", letting us know that the baby was born and healthy and that we should come down. We packed dinner to take to the new father and headed back to the hospital. This time we went to the Mother/Baby unit. Again, the experience was very pleasant and peaceful. We arrived in time to watch the new baby girl getting her first bath. She looked healthy, although not happy about being scrubbed. We were then able to hold our new niece and learn a little bit more about how things work in a hospital when a baby is born.

The miracle for us was the entire experience. It brought us a lot of peace to be able to see the hospital and where we will be this Summer when our baby is born. The feeling in the hospital was very different than I had expected to feel, and I know that it was God's way of letting me know that everything will be okay. I'm still nervous, but not so worried about it.

What is a Miracle?

In a world of social media, where we have been somewhat slow to join,  we decided that it was about time that we caught up with the times and began a blog. Our intent is to share some of the many mini miracles that we have witnessed in our lives and continue to witness daily. We hope that this snapshot of miracles will be a blessing to you and help you to also recognize the miracles in your own life.

The Bible Dictionary states that "Miracles should not be regarded as deviations from the ordinary course of nature so much as manifestations of divine or spiritual power."

In Mormon 9:19-21 it states that "And if there were miracles wrought then [when Jesus Christ lived], why has God ceased to be a God of miracles and yet be an unchangeable Being? And behold, I say unto you he changeth not; if so he would cease to be God; and he ceaseth not to be God, and is a God of miracles.
"And the reason why he ceaseth to do miracles among the children of men is because that they dwindle in unbelief, and depart from the right way, and know not the God in whom they should trust.
"Behold, I say unto you that whoso believeth in Christ, doubting nothing, whatsoever he shall ask the Father in the name of Christ it shall be granted him; and this promise is unto all, even unto the ends of the earth."

We believe that miracles, whether small or great, are real and continue to happen even now.