Picture me this past Saturday with ten hungry people at my house for a birthday celebration.
And then picture me pulling the chicken pot pie out of the oven at the appointed time and realizing that something had gone terribly, terribly wrong. The usually crisp and tasty biscuit topping had inexplicably transformed itself into a soggy, doughy mess.
To make matters worse, I had doubled the recipe which means I had a second pan of goo to match the first one. (I am always amazed that even after five decades of cooking, I can still have such a massive fail. I think when I doubled the recipe, I got a proportion off somewhere.)
Did I mention I had ten hungry people to feed?
Thankfully, I am blessed with two amazing daughters who ran to my assistance to help me troubleshoot the next steps.
We decided that the first thing to do was to laugh for five minutes while gazing upon the pitiful repast. (Note: If you ever ruin a meal, it is vitally important that you, too, should laugh like a hysterical hyena before doing anything else. Because if you don’t laugh, you will probably cry.)
Since Gage had to be at work at a designated time, we didn’t have unlimited time to come up with a Plan B. (Like ordering pizza or running to the grocery store.)
After we had finished laughing, we considering putting into practice the famous saying, “Life is short, eat dessert first.” We figured we could open presents, serve the cake, and then shove everyone out the door to their cars before the inevitable blood sugar crashes hit. (Our family is famous for being very protein-dependent to keep moods steady.)
But that didn’t seem overly hospitable so we started brainstorming, thinking up (and discarding as undoable) half a dozen possible solutions. Finally, Meagan reminded us that she had brought two family-sized macaroni and cheese dinners for the kids; she already had one of them hot from the microwave. We decided that while the birthday people opened their gifts, we would heat the other macaroni and cheese dinner. I spooned both dinners into one casserole dish, added some diced meat I had on hand, put a little cheese on top, sprinkled it with parsley, broiled it, and called it a day.
We also made some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to add a little protein to the mix for the kids. Isn’t Meagan so cute?
And so that was the big birthday lunch to celebrate Sarah turning twenty-eight (August 23) and Andrew turning four. (August 27) Everyone had a good attitude about the less-than-exciting celebratory meal and I promised Sarah (who had requested the pot pie) that I would have her and Gage over again soon and make it again.
While the main dish was a bust, the dessert was a hit. And guess who made the scratch cake and scratch frosting?
My own, multi-talented husband.
Tippi is rarely far from Steve’s side. Snowy and Summer hung out with me a lot but Lady Tippi is definitely her daddy’s dog.
The cake was a banana, peanut butter, sour cream, and chocolate concoction using a recipe from Gage’s mom. I’d say Steve’s first significant foray into the world of baking was a success.
Don’t you love the design he made in the frosting? His creativity has found another outlet.
Here are a few more photos of the day. (Steve’s shirt says, “I never dreamed that one day I’d become a grumpy old man but here I am, killing it.)
When it was all over, the kitchen looked like this.
It was definitely a day to be remembered–for many reasons.
I want to show you from the day is the card I designed for Sarah’s birthday.
I will never match Gage’s fabulous artistic abilities, but I do know how to use an app called Canva. (There is a free version that you can do a whole lot with–I highly recommend it!) I designed this from scratch.
I added this phrase to the back since it’s one of Sarah’s quotes from Winnie-the-Pooh. I got a package of brown envelopes from Amazon for $5 to complete the look. So much fun to do that kind of thing; I could do it all day long!
On Sunday morning, Steve and Nathan had the chance to play drums and bass on a worship team in Rock Hill, SC that needed those slots filled just for the one Sunday. (The pastor is a friend of ours.) The two of them rarely get to play together and it is one of their greatest joys. I was so glad they had the opportunity. (This is a screen shot from the video so not real clear.)
On Sunday afternoon, I was delighted to have my dear friend, Cheryl Denton, and her husband, Buddy, pass through town on their way home from a week of preaching in Russian churches in South Carolina. She and I hadn’t seen each other for almost a year so we dashed out to a nearby restaurant to catch up while Steve and Buddy stayed home and chatted. I don’t have a lot of friends, but the ones I do have are true treasures.
So there you have a snapshot of our weekend. A wonderful, chaotic birthday celebration, father/son music played, and time spent with a dear friend.
What about you?
Tell us about one of your cooking disasters.
What’s a main dish or dessert you would request for your birthday?
Are you a fan of Winnie the Pooh? Do you have a favorite saying?
Would you rather have a few good friends or a lot of good acquaintances? Tell us about your best friend.
Are any of you in the path of the hurricane and getting ready to evacuate? Our prayers are with you!
My favorite birthday dessert would be homemade shortcake with fresh strawberries and homemade from scratch whipped cream!!
We just flew into Cancun last Saturday and a hurricane was brewing so that was a little bit scary! It was raining really hard and we thought maybe our vacation would be a bust but then the weather cleared and the rest of the week was absolutely beautiful! Thank goodness. We have an absolutely amazing group of really wonderful friends. I also have a really good core group of women friends. And one especially wonderful bestie friend. I love them all!
I’m sure I’ve had many a cooking disaster. Who doesn’t? Lol I just don’t remember having any with a large group at hand. I’m sorry that happened to you!
LeeAnne,
Yum. I haven’t had strawberry shortcake in a very long time, especially with scratch whipped cream. You’ve got me hungry now!
Glad the Cancun weather cooperated for you and the hurricane decided to leave you alone.
A cooking disaster: once I tried to make a meringue pie that turned out to be a chocolate pie with fried eggs on top. That chicken pot pie still looked pretty good to me though.
I see Steve’s shirt advertised on twitter all the time, only it says “married to a grumpy old man”-you should get that one so you match!
Can’t believe Sarah is getting close to 30. She still looks so young. Glad she and Andrew had a nice party.
Kristen,
A chocolate pudding with fried eggs on top. Hmmmm. That sounds like a genuine disaster! But kudos to your for even trying to make a meringue. I don’t think I’ve ever done one.
Yes, Sarah is one of those people who will be 50 and look 35!
It’s been a crazy busy few weeks for me so I haven’t commented as much I like!
Steve’s cake is beautiful! Happy birthday to Sarah and Andrew!! I’m so sorry about your pot pie but y’all handled everything so well and it will be a birthday to remember.
I used to request an Oreo ice cream pie with lots of hot fudge. Now, I just want a brownie – warm from the oven. It can be from a box or homemade. I’m not too hard to please there.
I love Pooh and there are so many great quotes! I use this one for my husband: “If you live to be a hundred, I hope I live to be a hundred minus one day, so that I never have to live a day without you.”
—Winnie the Pooh
My BFF and I met in 9th grade (so almost 40 years ago!!) and we still see each other several times a year. We can pick up right where we left off even if we haven’t talked in weeks! I just spent 2 weeks overseas with her and we had a wonderful time.
We just got outer bands of rain where I am. I am thankful for a little bit of cooler weather from it. Low 80s is perfect!
I hope y’all have a wonderful weekend!
Suzanne,
I totally agree about brownies (or any dessert) warm from the oven. A topping of good vanilla ice cream and all is well in the world.
We have been Pooh fans since the kids were small. Sometimes we’ll break out and sing a line or two from a song; such a lovely character and story.
How great to have a friend from 40 years ago. I have one of those too, and they are irreplaceable.
The cake looks delicious! Happy birthday to the birthday peeps.
I have a corn bread recipe that my 97 year old bestie gave me and she told me to never try to double it and make it, to just make it twice if you needed more. She said it just didn’t work when you doubled the ingredients. So I heed her warning.
In my family we have burned bread so many times it’s almost a given it will happen 🙂 When first married I set off the smoke alarm several times.
Hot fudge sundae cake for birthdays!
I am a huge Pooh fan and that is my GRANDma name! Actually everyone in my family calls me Pooh. Even friends do. So I like all Pooh sayings!
I have many best friends! I am so blessed!!!
We are in VA and out of the path of the storm! Prayers for all who are in it’s path!
Eswim,
Oh yes, I definitely set off the smoke alarm as a newlywed. Steve and I joked that instead of having brown and serve rolls (which were a thing 40 years ago) we usually ended up with black and serve. 🙂
I love that your grandma name is Pooh. Such a delightful character–we are big Pooh fans.
Happy belated birthday to Sarah and Andrew. I can always remember her birthday as she was born one day after my nephew. Andrew looks like he’s almost the same height as Grayson.
One year at Thanksgiving or Christmas, I put our mashed potatoes in the crock pot. My mom said her friend did that. Well, they were fine for lunch but we left crockpot on low. When dinner rolled around, the potatoes had turned into something like wallpaper paste.
When I was still working, we brought dessert in for our birthday. The person who had their birthday right before you brought in your dessert . The guy who was supposed to bring my dessert in asked me what I wanted. I said I’d like a chocolate chip cookie cake. I can’t remember what he brought but it was definitely what I expected. So I would probably ask for a chocolate chip cookie cake.
I tend to have a few close friends. My best friend is probably my friend who lives in the Daytona area. Her son lives in Tallahassee so he is potentially in the path of the hurricane. I have many friends in Tampa. One friend who lives just south of St. Pete is actually at her son’s in New Hampshire but she is worried about her house. I also have friends in the Jacksonville area.
Phyllis,
Wallpaper paste for Thanksgiving is NOT a good thing! In the past, I have made my mashed potatoes ahead of time and then spooned them into the crockpot to keep warm until we ate.
I like the policy where you worked of people who just had their birthday bringing in your dessert. That kept one person from always having to keep track of it all. Chocolate chip cookie cake sounds wonderful!
Steve (and your whole family) are definitely multi-talented. Please tell Steve that his cake was beautiful!
Fred and Lucy,
I agree! And I’ll tell him.
Good to see your names pop up here. Blessings!
Happy Birthday to Sarah and Andrew.
I agree with Ruth that biscuits would be great to save the pot pie/chicken stew dish. My main disasters are from leaving a pan on the stove top too long and burning the contents. I have scrubbed way to many black pans with cream of tartar to save them. One disaster that I was able to fix was the first dinner I cooked for my first boyfriend. I tried to make just boiled potatoes but they got all mealy textured. I had never made mashed potatoes, but tried to remember what my mom did and it worked out ok. Turns out boyfriend love mashed potatoes.
I think I would be more likely to pick a main dish for my birthday dinner. When choosing where to go out for my birthday, I look at what restaurant gives the best birthday discount or freebie.
I love Winnie the Pooh and loved reading the original (not the Disney version) to my class. Don’t have a favorite quote, but love the story Eeyore has a Birthday and Gets Two Presents. I liked doing Eeyore’s voice but it always made my eyes water. Has Sarah seen the movie “Christopher Robin”? I loved the kitchen scene where Pooh gets honey all over.
I call acquaintances friends but had one best friend that can’t be beat. The only person I ever knew who could listen and never judge, who knew all your faults and deepest secrets and loved you all the more. She passed 4 years ago and I miss her so much. I do love getting together with all friends and it is fun to see how time hasn’t passed since you last spoke even if it has been years.
We are not in the path of the hurricane and also pray for the safety of those there. It is something I never have experienced.
Patti,
Oh yes, I have had many burned black pans over the years. Steve is very gallant and usually cleans them for me. I think one time we actually had to throw a pan out. It was beyond hope.
Yes, we love the original Winnie the Pooh, too. And we did watch Christopher Robin. Such great and heartfelt story-telling. We need more stories and movies like that.
I’m so sorry you lost your best friend; that leaves a hole that nothing can come close to filling. I know you must revisit the memories you made with her a lot. Hugs!
Sure hope you ate that flopped hotdish somehow or other the next day… sad for good ingred. to go to waste.
Maybe could stir it all up into a new dish…chicken stew? Put canned biscuits on it?
Or Steve could make real ones…I’m sure he could easily do the job!
Ruth
Ruth,
Yes, biscuits on chicken stew would be delicious and I have no doubt about Steve’s abilities to make the biscuits. He’s becoming quite the chef!
Your card is amazing! I haven’t delved very deeply into Canva, but I’ve heard so many people talk about it. 🙂
Disaster dish? Probably my first-ever pecan pie. I made it as my contribution to a Thanksgiving dinner when we lived in Germany – a bunch of couples/families got together for the holiday since we were all so far from home. I baked it according to directions, but when the hostess cut into it, the filling just ran everywhere. I didn’t realize until that moment that the instructions were in Celsius… hahaha
Steve’s cake looks amazing! Maybe that could become his new “retirement gig” ???
I had to look twice at the pic of Steve serving the cake to Sarah. The background made the scene look like your old house in Manteo! 🙂 It must be so comforting to have the same furnishings in your new-to-you, yet familiar, home. 🙂
I have very few friends, and a lot of acquaintances.
Stefanie,
Give Canva a try; it’s fabulous!
Nothing says “Thanksgiving celebration” like pecan pie filling running everywhere. You definitely made a memory!
Yes, it is nice to have familiar furniture in our new place; we’ve bought a couple new pieces but most of it has been in the family a few decades. The best kind of furniture.
We had a cooking disaster of another sort several years ago: running out of food at a wedding! The food itself was delicious, but part way through the evening, we ran out. Two of my cousins jumped into action and ran to the store and made more food literally before anyone noticed we had run out. From my perspective, it was a real life fishes and loaves day 🙂
As for friends, I am wholeheartedly in the few-close-friends camp. My best friend and I met at age 3 and have stayed close despite miles and marriages and joys and sorrows. I am going to be moving soon and will be less than 100 miles apart instead of our current 900. I can’t wait!
Robin,
Yikes. Running out of food at a wedding is every wedding host’s nightmare. Kudos to the cousins for rescuing the day!
I’m so happy right along with you that you are moving so close to your best friend. I see many lovely memories being made.
I saw the pic of that beautiful cake and wondered what bakery you got it from! I guess Steve has a new side hustle now. And you and that card! So pretty and artsy and very Sarah. You two continue to amaze.
I’m so sorry about the pot pie fail. I’ve always wondered too how a dish that’s been made for years without fail will suddenly, for no discernable reason, flop in the most alarming way. It’s one of the reasons cooking makes me nervous. You ladies sure did a great job pulling together a meal in spite of a trusted recipe going rogue on you!
Loved all the pictures of the birthday celebration! It makes me so happy to see you all together.
Love, Deb
Deb,
A trusted recipe going rogue. Yes, that’s a perfect description for what happened. I could just see those potpies in the oven together, whispering and conspiring to fail. Harrumph!
Steve was very proud of himself for pulling off that cake; it took at least three hours total and it made Sarah feel very loved.
Our house has always been “the house” for parties and entertaining. God blessed me with the gift of hospitality and my mother taught me everything about being a hostess. Our daughter is active duty Coast Guard and when she’s in an exciting locale, we have been known to throw themed dinner parties based on her deployment. Several years ago when she was in Germany, we had four couples from church over for an authentic Bavarian meal. I researched, practiced and planned. Everything was going to plan but the scratch potato dumplings that I had spent hours on were not cooking fast enough. To hurry the process along so that everything would be ready at once, I made a fatal potato dumping error. I put a lid on the pot. Five minutes later when I came back to get them out, they were gone. Disintegrated. I had a very large pot of potato water. Along with our guests, we laughed and laughed and ate a potato free dinner. More pretzel rolls, please! My embarrassment disappeared as fast as the dumplings when one friend said, “Whew! I’m so glad you’re human! Everything always seems near perfect at your dinners and it’s a bit intimidating.” This was a wonderful moment of humility for me as God changed my focus from an impressive meal to really connecting with my friends. 12 years later, it still comes up in conversation!
Kristy,
Oh my. I didn’t know potato dumplings would actually disintegrate! I’m sure your face when you took off the lid was a sight to behold.
But what a great memory and a great lesson. Perfection is highly overrated and guests relate much better to someone who doesn’t always have their act together.
Kudos to you for practicing your gift of hospitality throughout the years; it’s wonderful to think of how many lives you’ve brightened by opening your home to them. We need more people like you!