Wink from Heaven: Hands Full

Sunday, September 26, 2010

Hands Full

We've had our hands full of fun things!

And we finished our morning making the yummiest chocolate chip oatmeal cookies ever!

I like recipes that make a lot so this is a great one!

1 1/2 c shortening or margarine

1 1/2 c sugar

3/4 c brown sugar
4 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

5 c oatmeal

2 1/2 c flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp soda

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon (I add more because I think it's tasty!)

1/2 tsp nutmeg

2 c of chocolate chips (I add more because you can never have too much chocolate)
Mix the first 6 ingredients. Then mix dry ingredients and add to the sugar mixture. Blend well and drop on cookie sheets. Bake at 350 for 7-9 minutes.

8 comments:

Junior said...: Love those smiles. Yummy, I am going to have to try your cookie recipe.; September 26, 2010 at 10:04 PM
Colleen said...: I love a good cookie recipe. Thank you!; September 27, 2010 at 6:55 AM
The VW's said...: Oh, so much fun! Your boys look so happy! Combing your hair is overrated anyway! Hope you continue to have lots of fun! Hugs!!!; September 27, 2010 at 7:09 AM
Janet "Grammy" Harrold said...: April, Nice to meet you and your wonderful and beautiful family, especially Caleb. He truly is a miracle and I think it would be nice if many families adopted that special wink code for caleb (maybe you would prefer it just be your own personal wink and that's o.k.)But I think it would be nice for your family to see it catch on across the world. We could start a campaign and your family would feel the love and support of strangers everywhere. Anyway, just a thought. As a grandmother, your mom's story (poem)really touched me.I can't express enough to extended family how important it is for them to be involved in their loved ones lives and it amazes me at how many are not. Nice meeting you and looking forward to getting to know you better while we work together on kidz. You are an amazing Mom!; September 27, 2010 at 7:41 AM
Tara Bennett said...: Oh thanks for the yummy recipe! And wow is that a happy pic of Caleb or what.... he is just beaming with joy!; September 27, 2010 at 9:25 PM
Becky said...: LOVE these pictures! You can see the joy in Caleb's face. Thanks for the chat yesterday. I MISS YOU!; September 28, 2010 at 4:32 PM
shirlgirl said...: LOVE that picture of Caleb. It is so sweet--he is a precious boy. Please give him a kiss for me. The recipe looks good too. I'll bet there aren't any left in your house!; September 28, 2010 at 5:30 PM
arianne said...: I want to try these. Thanks for sharing.; September 29, 2010 at 4:40 PM

Prayer for Caleb

(written by Caleb's Grandma in her weekly column -2008-)

In my family we have a secret code to communicate our love for each other when we are out in public. We wink. When one of us is about to perform or speak, we look for a family member’s face in the crowd. Then we wink at each other. Closing one eye and winking is our secret code for saying, “I love you. You can do it. You’re wonderful.”

About three years ago, my grandson Caleb was born into our family. He must have known before birth that he would never be able to speak to us because he was born with one eyelid permanently closed. So, he is always “winking” at us, always communicating, “I love you. You can do it. You’re wonderful.”

Caleb has one eye lid permanently closed because he is missing one of his eyes . . . and he is also missing his brain. All the doctors said he would die soon after birth. They were wrong. Caleb is three years old. He is a medical miracle. The doctors say he can’t see, hear, speak, think or move. Those who know and love Caleb understand he has his own unique way of experiencing the world and communicating his love to those around him.

After Caleb was born the hospice people told us to buy a burial plot and continually warned us of his imminent death. We soon learned you can not live well in a state of fear and sadness. We decided we could spend Caleb’s entire life anxious and scared he might die at any moment, or we could celebrate each day we were blessed to have him with us. In the beginning, my daughter April celebrated Caleb’s birthday every week instead of every year with balloons and cupcakes because we simply did not know how long we would have him with us. We stopped the cupcakes after we gained ten pounds, but the celebrating goes on.

We all prayed for a miracle when we first learned about Caleb’s condition. We got one. Caleb’s birth, life and mission have had a deep and lasting impact on our lives. His spirit, eternal identity and most of all the loving, individual relationship he has with each of us is truly a miracle. Because of Caleb we know that each of us has a divine purpose and that the physical body is a sacred gift we should never take for granted. We better understand the worth of a soul and the resiliency of the human spirit.

Caleb’s five year old brother Matthew said, “Grandma. The doctors said Caleb was going to die, but he didn’t. That’s the first miracle I ever saw!”

Sometimes Caleb’s baby brother Mitchell pulls out his feeding tube while they hold hands riding together in their double stroller. Sometimes the only intervention that can get Caleb’s heart rate up is when his older brothers Josh and Matty crawl in his crib, hug him and sing, “I am a Child of God.” ...If you have a moment please offer a prayer for the little boy who has never been able to utter a single word and yet has taught everyone who knows and loves him – all the secrets of a rich and meaningful life.