Celebrating a birthday and enjoying a day at the park

Each year, one of my children gets a turn going to the park to celebrate their birthday. This year was Elijah's turn. Since his birthday falls in February, the park did not look too inviting to him at the time. I assured him we'd do it later. Now that the six-month mark since his birthday landed this week, I told him I wanted to plan it for him.

With three uncles, grandpa and grandma, and a dozen cousins in the area, we asked them all to join us at Washington Park, which is only 20 minutes from our house. Since day one, when we visited the park a couple of years ago for the first time, we were impressed with the quiet setting where whitetail deer come to graze among the various points of interest scattered over the premises. Elijah was impressed with the idea, especially since a number of his cousins were from Danville, Ohio.

We three sister-in-laws chipped in and helped each other with a meal: homemade buns, grilled burgers, fruit pops, energy balls, salty snacks, and lemonade.

The children romped and played by the swing sets and slides while others went on a walk and Grandpa grilled the burgers over a fire.

I enjoyed chatting with my sisters-in-law and catching up on the latest events in their lives.

Grandpa's burgers were delicious on the homemade buns made by one of the Ohio guests. Tomato slices, cucumbers, onion slices, and cheese slices topped off the sandwiches. As I munched on my sandwich, I glanced over at the people seated at the picnic tables under the pavilion. Daniel was no longer here; the other Yoder brothers sat with their wives. I was glad to see them together — it's just that we were all on our own journeys. In my heart, I still did not want anyone else's life; where I was placed is where I wanted to be.

As soon as the children had emptied their plates, they were off and running. Uncle Tobias summoned them back for fruit pops he had kept in the ice chest to keep them from melting in the toasty August weather. I smiled as I watched the little children licking and dripping sweet juice.

By 7:30, we were ready to start packing up to head home. We had hired drivers to take us there and scheduled them to come back to pick us up again. One of them had plans to make the second trip once the first load was taken home. The children and I volunteered to stay and spend time there as a family while we waited for the driver to come back.

As the other two vans left, we headed for the trails where we took a relaxing walk. It was like the tender touch of God in our midst, much like those first months after Daddy had gone to heaven. There is that missing spot that God fills in a meaningful way when we have quiet moments alone. The trail took us through the woods and open area where a couple of guys were golfing. The little boys watched with fascination as they hit one ball after the next toward their designated area. By now it was cooling off.

As we walked around a bend in the far corner of the park, I paused. Though the children all knew the story, I couldn't help but again point out to them where we could see the hospital where Jesse was born. We never tire of that story of how Jesse was born so close to our family, though we had no idea he existed. At home, the foster license had just come in the mail. We were praying for our future children, asking God to open doors according to His plan and will. That very weekend before he was born, I could not take my mind off what my heart knew God would one day do for our family by adding more children through foster care.

Together we kept walking down the paths — in a real way, we were also moving on through the pages of time. Daddy Daniel was not with us as before, but the same God was with us as He has always been.

As we neared the play area with swing sets and slides, the children and mom had fun unwinding, swinging, singing, and chatting.

Life was hard, but it was good, and yes, even complete.

Chocolate Popsicles

Ingredients

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup milk

1/3 cup sweetener

1 tablespoon allulose (spelled “gilulose” in the scan, likely allulose)

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum

Instructions

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, whisk together the cream, milk, sweetener, and cocoa powder. Bring to a boil and cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.

Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Sprinkle the surface with xanthan gum and whisk briskly to combine. Let the mixture cool at least 10 minutes, then pour into popsicle molds.

Freeze 1 hour, then insert sticks two-thirds of the way. Return to freezer and freeze until solid, at least 5 hours or overnight.

To unmold: run warm water over the outside of the mold for 5—10 seconds, then gently tug the stick to release.