I love making breakfast for my kids during the summer and on Saturdays off during the school year, and when their friends have spent the night. Crepes are my specialty; crepes smothered in whipping cream and Nutella 
or sprinkled with lemon and powered sugar or in the summer, topped with fresh Oregon strawberries or raspberries and whipped cream. 
I love gathering with my children, with the table nicely set with my good German porcelain and the pretty containers for the lemon juice and the Nutella and whipping cream and strawberries and plenty of napkins. And we say a prayer to thank God for our meal, and it is pure joy. It’s a great way to start our day together before everyone goes his or her own direction. We have grounded ourselves together. 
When my kids write me Mother’s day cards and birthday cards, they thank me for making me crepes for them. They remember the crepes. Of all the things I do for them, they talk about the food I craft for them. From scratch. Wild. And my kids friends talk about eating crepes at my house and the my tell their friends when they are spending the night that their mom makes crepes and their friends want to eat breakfast in the morning with our family. And while I am making them, the house is filled with the aroma of butter and fresh thin pancakes frying on the stove top and that is what they wake up to. And it makes me feel good, if I do nothing else I day long, if I’ve made homemade breakfast for my kids.
But crepes are a mess to make. My kitchen turns to shambles and greasy butter flies everywhere and the batter splashes in nooks and crannies of the stovetop and my kids eat the crepes in minutes then dash off to do other things for hours and there is still the mess.
But it’s oh so worth it.
My husband on weekends when he is home used to never join us for breakfast. He’d eat his granola with cold milk and take off into the yard or to the garage to get his work done.
“Takes too much time. I have too much to do,” he’d say to me about eating breakfast with us as he meandered off.
But I said to him, this is an important part of life, taking the time to have this breakfast together; it’s so simple, yet so profound. This art, making breakfast for my kids; it reaches the kids in ways that I cannot explain but it just does. Crafting crepes is an art. It cannot be measured with the word “Accomplishment” and “check it off your list of things done today.” Art is not a check-off list. Yet, like good art, it’s what matters in the end. It’s one of the things that our kids remember.
Sounds so simple. It is.
My kids once in a while get to go to their grandparents’ house, which is about 15 minutes from our house. Their grandpa makes a mean pancake and they say, “Grandpa makes the best pancakes,” and when I make pancakes, they tell me they are not as good as grandpa’s. That is what they remember about grandpa and it is fabulous. And we tell grandpa this and it makes him feel good. He has a secret recipe and he’s proud of it.
My husband is starting to recognize the importance of our weekend and days off morning breakfasts together. One day recently, it just hit him. He began sitting down with us to join us eating breakfasts together. And, he also began making pancakes as well. And bacon and buying good syrup to smother on top of the pancakes. It takes him away from his weekend projects for a few hours in the mornings and it is a mess and he only has so much time off and I totally understand that.
But, he realizes now that it is important to share that time with our kids.
Now, we argue over who gets to make the breakfast on a Saturday morning.
My Chi-chi! And we miss you surrounding us on that table during the summer months and all year long! – Now you are making breakfasts and other meals for others- you will be back for breakfasts again@!-Love you too- mom
My Chi-chi! And we miss you surrounding us on that table during the summer months and all year long! – Now you are making breakfasts and other meals for others- you will be back for breakfasts again@!-Love you too- mom
Tami- That is so true regarding how to get to someone’s heart, in your case your husband’s- I love how you do something (make breakfasts) because he loves it. The fellowship indeed is what we crave, need, must carve time out for. Yes, the projects will still be there. Thanks for your kind words and for reading! Cornelia
Tami- That is so true regarding how to get to someone’s heart, in your case your husband’s- I love how you do something (make breakfasts) because he loves it. The fellowship indeed is what we crave, need, must carve time out for. Yes, the projects will still be there. Thanks for your kind words and for reading! Cornelia
The way to my husbands heart is through his stomach 🙂 He loves bacon and eggs. I am not a huge breakfast person but I fix for him because I love him and it means something to him 🙂 When we met he taught me the importance of gathering and eating our meals together. When I cook I do it with love and when you do that, everything tastes better 🙂 The love and relationships that are strengthened around good food and fellowship is amazing. It is valuable time!! There will always be projects but we will not always have the people we love to join us at the table.
Cornelia ~ You love spending quality time with your husband and boys. Your post was a blessing to wake up to 🙂
Happy 4th of July ~
The way to my husbands heart is through his stomach 🙂 He loves bacon and eggs. I am not a huge breakfast person but I fix for him because I love him and it means something to him 🙂 When we met he taught me the importance of gathering and eating our meals together. When I cook I do it with love and when you do that, everything tastes better 🙂 The love and relationships that are strengthened around good food and fellowship is amazing. It is valuable time!! There will always be projects but we will not always have the people we love to join us at the table.
Cornelia ~ You love spending quality time with your husband and boys. Your post was a blessing to wake up to 🙂
Happy 4th of July ~
Ohh I loved those summer days with my family! And I miss the long big breakfasts with my wonderful family!–Love you guys! chichi
Ohh I loved those summer days with my family! And I miss the long big breakfasts with my wonderful family!–Love you guys! chichi