Maybe Betty has changed her formula since I’ve tried her cakes, Jessica! Last time I tried (lemon cake mix) it tasted like sweet sponge — we didn’t like the texture. We like dense cakes. I also don’t remember the words, “Super Moist” so maybe it’s time to broaden my cake horizons. 🙂 Have a wonderful summer Jessica! xoxo

Betty Crocker Super Moist cake mixes DEFINITELY take the cake!!! (Pun intended!!!).

I supposedly have a “secret cake recipe” and my neighbor tells everyone that I make the best cupcakes she has ever had. My secret? Don’t tell. It’s Betty Crocker Super Moist. I used Duncan Hines once and was SOOO disappointed.

I think we can still be friends. =)

Christy, this made me laugh! I think the last time my waist was like Scarlett’s I was around 12 years old. I think my mom would have been thrilled if I had even agreed to have a single bite of pie (food pusher that she was), but I never had one until I was an adult. And yes, including the crust. xoxo

Thank you for sharing this, Ember. I love the picture of what your land must have looked like, and the strength your mother demonstrated in more ways than one… God bless her, and you…. xo

A tree surgeon once badly overcharged my mother, back in the early 70s. We had five acres of land and lots of trees, but very little money. To feed us, my mother raised sheep and grew fruit and vegetables, kept hens, and often worked far into the night preparing and freezing food to keep us all year round. One of our trees overhung the road that wound round the boundary of our place, and a branch had rot, so the tree surgeon was hired to saw it off. He charged £100, a LOT of money at that time. My mother said very little, but I think she must have felt worried and upset, because we had such a tight household budget. He saw that she looked none too pleased, and he said to her: “Let me know if ever you’re in any trouble and I’ll do what I can to help.”
I, a teenager, standing watching, listened to her reply:
“If ever I’m in trouble, I’ll find a way out of it somehow without coming to you.”
Now, my mother is not an ungracious woman, and she didn’t complain abut his charges, but her words modelled a courage and determination I have remembered always. She accepted what he was and what he did; but she would never go back for more.
She has spirit. She is very brave. I love that about her.

You are so kind, Shari.
I wish I had known your mom better. She seemed like such a warm, wise woman to me. And it occurs to me that if we learn the two lessons you’ve mentioned, then our lives (and the lives of those we love) will be rich beyond words. You’ve given me my food for thought for the day, friend. xo

It’s hard for me to put into words what all my mother taught me…this may sound odd, but I feel like, at this current time in my life, I am just beginning to see, and to understand more clearly, all that my mother taught me.
Two main things that first come to mind are – how to love others and secondly, how to take time to see, not just look, but really see.

Thank you so much Elizabeth. I have read the story of your parents’ divorce — it’s what brought me to your beautiful blog! I cried as I read it.

The post with some details about my parents’ divorce is here:

http://www.justjulieb.com/when-a-heart-breaks/

I’m so glad you stopped by Elizabeth…God bless your day! xo