Jack-in-the-Box has almost replicated a food-sensation from my youth:
Tacos. At Wrigley Field in Chicago on a sunny day. Made early in the day, no doubt, and kept warm in steamers and under hot lights, a shell that started as crispy became greasy from its tasty contents and a little chewy and they. were. magnificent.
Kudos to Jack-in-the-Box for at least making the killing of us all with terribly unhealthy food so darn enjoyable.
GemGem turned 5 and her mommy and daddy hosted the whole family of us at a picnic party for her (and her big-brother, Gavin) on Memorial Day evening. Stephanie (www.maydae.com) took this photo.
The doll cake.
Some church lady taaught my mom to make the good, old-fashioned doll cake (or “barbie-doll cake”) the year I was turning 13. I hadn’t played with Barbies since I was 4, but my mom made me one anyway. I did not have fond feelings about them.
But Jovan asked for one in 2007 before she even had daughters and so I made it and discovered it was fun and easy. Then, for Guini’s 4th birthday in 2009, I made her a Cinderella cake. And it was a hit and I liked them more.
Gemma just turned 5 and has that dazzling head full of long, red, curly hair (which she always wants me to straighten, noooooo!). And as it happens, Disney’s Pixar is about to release a movie called, Brave, and the heroine is a gorgeous redhead named Merida. Voila – a cake that looks like the birthday girl!
Here is how it went:
9″ pan, 8″ pan, 6″ pan and a 6″ stainless steel bowl for the top of the skirt of the dress.
2 Confetti cakes mixes
2 containers of strawberry fluff icing for filling
a batch of buttercream and some food coloring
Her mommy told me Gemma wanted a very colorful princess cake. She is a very colorful princess, so that seemed right.
Baked cake. Stacked and filled cakes on a cake stand. Wrapped the Merida-doll in painter’s tape (so she wouldn’t be totally naked when we cut the cake (from an earlier lesson learned). Used a serrated knife to create ball-gown shape. Crumb-coated with some of the pre-made strawberry icing. Divided up the buttercream into small batches. Used a “leaf tip” to cover the whole doll in ruffles and then just used various colors and tips and started “making colorful.”
I suppose it would be good to start with a plan. But just doing whatever is so much more fun.
Plus knowing Gemma will just love it. And it looks like her! That is nice.
Amelie is always first in line to offer to take a swipe of the icing for us.
Steph took this last shot, which I LOVE. It was breezy and getting the candles lit and having them stay lit was challenging and I love how every girl (regardless of age) there was full of anticipation.
Dave and Tara introduced me to this song the summer of 2006. I had just left a busy (crazy, heart-pounding, wreck-of-a) church position and I was in rough shape. They were about to embark on this new thing called Worship and the Word Movement, where they could travel and sing and lead worship and infuse local churches and ministries with much-needed resources for worship – all for just the invitation, no $$ required. Missionaries.
It was a summer night. In a barn east of Brighton and the Holy Spirit was pre~sent! O my. And they started singing it and every person in the place had their faces turned heavenward with their arms raised singing, “Yes, yes – yes, yes!”
And I was standing there begging God to show me what was next, to give me my next assignment – something to prove He wasn’t actually finished with my life in light of the loss and the pain of the months just passed.
And you know when you hear from heaven and know it is really God because you know you would never have heard those words from your own heart and mind – you know that kind of hearing? I heard like that and He told me, in spite of the fact that the words of this song are amazing, sweet, and about simple surrender (and have a decidedly early 70s R & B flavor, which is so me),
“Do not sing this song. There is nothing for you to say ‘yes’ to.”
And I am serious. Because He was serious. He absolutely would not allow me the honor of singing this song. I looked around that barn and just like the wounded heart I was, spewed out, with hot, stinging tears, “Why do they all get to say ‘yes?!'” He reiterated:
“There is NOTHING for you to say yes to.”
Settled. KILLED. Just broke my heart. I had thought He meant forever. I couldn’t comprehend He was looking out for me, making sure I was safe before we ventured further…
Many times since, I have asked Dave and Tara why they don’t do that song more because I love it and God lets me sing it now. **happy face** :)
Flash forward: A Sunday morning (today).
I try to slink unnoticed in to the church. I am immediately greeted by 2 of the HF familia who will not let me slink by. Oh no. I just want to come in, sit in the Whitewater dark and sing a little (along with my son, Rocky, who is leading), hear the sermon and leave like I came: over-worked, over-wrought, over-tired, all my own fault.
Rocky and Jovan are about to step out as missionaries themselves. 6 years later, we are here again…He has a dream to build a worship team that goes out into the highways and byways, even into bars. He wants to actually worship the Lord in the dark places. He and Jovan want to write and produce music that will bring healing where the wounded live. And today, omygoodness – it reminded me of that little white barn with Dave and Tara 6 years ago.
And he dusted off the too-little-used song, “Yes.” And I am tired. And I am a bit beaten down by working without resting, by fearing man rather than God, by all the things I should know better than to allow…But sitting there (in the Whitewater dark) I realized, the thing is, I can say yes now. God is asking me.
“Do you want to do this?” I hear Him ask…
Yes, yes. Yes, Lord, yes.
And I hear Rocky lead out with strong resolve:
From my heart I say Yes
From my soul I say yes
All my life I say yes, yes…..
So that is my song of the day. Maybe the month or the next 60 days, I don’t know. It just really washed over me.
GOTTA get a camera that can handle the sound and low-lights. The vid is low-quality. But I am sharing it anyway, because if you’re trying to decide something right now, see if these words and this melody will fit. And if it helps you say what you know you already want to say anyway…
“Yes,” led by Rocky Rhoades (my beloved son in whom I am so pleased.) Words and music by Dave Powers (c) 2006 (my other beloved son in whom I am also very much pleased).
I started loving the BeeGees in the early 70s, though they’d been around. I had put a Bee Gee documentary in my Netflix Instant queu a couple months back and finally watched it after Robin died and it made me remember why I love so many songs they sang and wrote. And why they impacted music like they did.
I think that a lot of people who didn’t “grow up with the Bee Gees” think of the 70s disco-craze and believe that is all they had, but that just is not true (though they did it bigger and better than anyone, truly). I am not going to defend them or try to prove their great worth to musical history in the century just past, though I would be remiss not to mention that they are among the top grossing performers of all time. I will just say that they were really brothers (in case you didn’t know), and that three-part harmony in hit after hit through 4 decades will remain, ever, one of the most beautiful sounds on my stereo and in my heart.
Here are my top-ten favorite Bee Gee songs, in a slightly organized order but only because today this seems right.
Other days – something else. But today, in this order:
1. How Deep is Your Love.
2. Words (1968)
3. Run to Me (1972)
4. How Can You Mend a Broken Heart (early 1970s). Did they better with age? 1971 vs. the late 90s
5. Love You Inside Out
6. More Than a Woman…OK the suits on this video are a little ungodly. Boys, please. Don’t cause a sister to sin.
7. Love So Right
8. Fanny Be Tender, just before their disco days exploded, I loved this one.
9. Too Much Heaven
10. To Love Somebody (late 1960s). Written for Otis Redding, but covered by a gazillion artists over the years, I still enjoy this 1960s rendition from one of their early albums (which I own, of course).
My favorites that they wrote for others:
Emotion (which they wrote for Samantha Sang)
Come on Over (for Olivia Newton-John)
Rest Your Love on Me (Olivia Newton-John and Andy Gibb)
Heartbreaker (Dionne Warwick). Dionne is Whitney Houston’s aunt.
Islands in the Stream (Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers)
If I Can’t Have You (which they actually wrote for Yvonne Elliman, 1977)
Immortality (for Celine Dion, late 90s). I don’t know if it’s the song or the beautiful video? Lovely words (“We don’t say good-bye…”). Classic little melodies within the melody. Just intoxicating. And they are all three there, the BeeGees, Barry, Maurice and Robin. Immortality in song.
You were my first grandchild ever, the beginning of the age of the bebes. And now you are zooming towards double-digits and it has gone by in such a flash I can barely believe it. Happy Birthday, my little man. You are a such a great, great kid. You are bright and light and sweet and helpful. You take care and take on big jobs. You are energetic and engaging. You are gentle and thoughtful and such a good big brother and cousin. You work hard, you play hard you sleep so soundly. I have never seen anyone go to sleep as fast and hard as you do, at least not since your mommy was little.
You are the smile of my life.
Being 9 will be one of the most amazing things you have ever done and like everything you have ever attempted, done, touched or tried, you will do it soooooo well! I just know it! I hope you will remember how much I love you all the days of your life.
God created you for great things. So here are some things from His Word for your birthday. And His words are life!
So, Gavin Lee Kelley? Here is a great way to spend your life: Praising the Lord.
Because young men who live with reverent awe of the great things God has done also live very joyful lives, and they are happy obeying His ways.
Plus – when you grow up and have children of your own, they’ll end up successful and amazing in everything they try to do! Just because you worship and live for God, your family will be blessed and tons of people around them will be blessed!
Your love for the Lord and your obedience are just open doors of blessing for you! You’ll have your needs met and the cool things you do for others will always be remembered by the Lord.
No matter how hard things get in the world, following the Lord will make your light shine even in really dark places. You are so compassionate and generous and in such right standing with God. It is just gonna make good come to you and cause people to do good business with you. When people hear your name, they will say, “Now that is a good guy!”
Because you trust in the Lord, you do not have to fear bad news. You can believe it, Gavin – you can trust in the Lord! You can even be sure when the enemy comes against you that the Lord will kick-butt on your behalf! O yes, he will.
I love that you share so freely and are so generous with your things. That just sets you up to affect your generation and be well thought of for the rest of forever!
This is the life of a little man who will give God lots of room in his life. It is the life your Nonna is praying for you.
From Psalm 112
I love you like crazy, little man. You know I do. You are one of the coolest people I have ever known in my whole life! Love you, Nonna.
Sunny, cool. Birds chirping away. The pots I planted last weekend are looking happy and sprightly. The dog is just sitting here vibing me with total love, like dogs do. O Sandy. Guini-the-grandbebe is asleep in the guest room, sweet girl she is (she was Grandpa’s date to his movie premier last night and got to meet all the “stars”!).
The reverential awe of the Lord = The Fear of the Lord.
Psalm 121
I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord watches over you—
the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from all harm —
he will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.
My help comes from the Lord – the Maker of heaven and earth!
