Baking and Family Togetherness

We all have our ways of dealing with difficult situations, and I have been switching between needing to stay very busy and needing to just sit somewhere in quietness. When staying busy I have found that baking is comforting. I think I am just needing to do something with my hands. I seem to be either baking or cross-stitching or knitting.


We spent a good part of the day Sunday in the kitchen. I wouldn't usually bake on a Sunday, but I just felt like I needed to. It started with cookies, and then some apple bars, and then a loaf of wheat bread, and then 4 batches of rolls, and some baby food apples. The house smelled lovely, the smell of baked goods always makes the house feel more like home. The boys enjoyed "helping" and making quite the mess. It was nice just to all be together in the kitchen. We always like being together but now it seems even more important.


We always love those days where we all congregate in the kitchen and work together. We like to make up batches of rolls or pancakes or muffins or whatever else to store away in the freezer, and make the bread for the upcoming week, and babyfood and whatever else we may need. We always have such a lovely time. Many times we will listen to edifying music as we work. This seem to be some of our best days. Jacob always loves when I put on my apron, he knows which apron is for baking and which is for cleaning so he is always excited to see my baking apron. He has always enjoyed "helping" to measure flour or stir something together, and now Joshua wants to help as well. Joshua likes to taste things for me to make certain that it is good, even if it is just flour. I know that it won't be long before Baby Joseph is eager to help. Joshua wanted to help knead the bread, which is something that Jacob would never do because he does not like to get his hands messy. Joshua, however, loves a good mess. My husband even enjoys helping, I think mostly because he likes that we are working together as a family.


I know that these little moments are moments that will likely stay with our children forever. I hope that one day they will look back fondly on our baking days, and that the smell of fresh bread will always remind them of home.