Perfectly Scorched

So being that yesterday's post was a little on the heavy side, I thought I would share something a bit more lighthearted this afternoon. Disclaimer: Once again I am totally exposing myself. Let's all give Transparency a warm welcome to our Hints of Hope blog world.

Ok, here it goes ...

We were on all new territory this holiday season. Being married. Splitting our time between both of our families. Starting new traditions. Making our best efforts to keep the old traditions. You get the gist. It was a whole new experience.

We had plans to see both of our families on Christmas day, but one thing I really wanted to do was to get everyone - both of our immediate families - together for dinner on Christmas Eve. And of course I had this bright idea that everyone should come to our home ...

And that I should cook.

Before we venture any further, let me add that the only thing I probably have ever cooked for my parents is banana bread ... when I was 12. And I believe my mother-in-law had at this point possibly eaten one of my chocolate chip cookies. If I am exaggerating Mom, feel free to chime in .... [Silence]. My mother swears that she offered many times to teach me to cook, and that I was simply too preoccupied with other things. Undoubtedly the truth. Not to mention she is a fabulous cook and it's intimidating! Now, I have of course cooked for my husband and I very much enjoy it. It started out very simple, and I'm getting better. I actually made a great dinner last night that I will have to share with you at some point. And yes, I'm boasting. The last words out of my husband last night before he nodded off to sleep were: Thanks for making dinner tonight, babe. It was really good. Yes!

Christmas Eve however, played out a little differently ...

I had lasagna on the menu, which I had put together the night before. I had also committed to making the appetizer - a brie cheese pastry. And a dessert - a peppermint red velvet cake. I had never baked a real cake from scratch before, so I thought it would be a good idea to start there. Christopher helped me swirl the red velvet cake with the yellow cake and it actually went pretty smoothly. I had fun icing it and it turned out pretty darn cute, if I do say so myself.

Our Christmas Eve service at my home church was scheduled for 5:00. Because I was participating in it, I had to leave my home at 3:00 to rehearse. Oh, I forgot to mention that. We were all going to the Christmas Eve service that evening before dinner. So you know what that means ... Everything had to be ready when we returned home because people would be hungry. I placed the brie in the oven and instructed my husband to remove the brie from the oven and place in the warming drawer, then to place the lasagna in the oven. When the lasagna was done baking, he was instructed to then place it in the warming drawer as well, then leave for church. I checked some last minute items off my list as I rushed out the door and headed for church.

Fast forward to about 4:45 p.m. I receive the following text message from my husband: The lasagna is done. The cheese is perfectly scorched.

Hmm, scorched? That's an odd choice of words, I thought. Well, he's a boy. They don't know cooking terms. I blocked that description out of my mind for the next hour or so until ...

I was driving back to my house with my mother-in-law in the car when she says, "Melissa [cousin] told me you used the no-boil lasagna noodles and that you hadn't used those before. Those are great - I use them all the time! As long as you keep the foil on while baking the lasagna .... "

Freakout moment # 1: Realize I had forgotten to instruct husband to keep foil on while baking.

Freakout moment # 2: Text message flashback: The cheese is perfectly ... scorched.

Freakout moment # 3: Well ... Let me just give you a visual:


Are you laughing hysterically? You should be! At this point, I was on the verge of a meltdown. It is no secret that I love presentation. I like things to be perfectly in their place and perfectly presented. It's a curse. My husband has calmed me down a few notches in this area. But it's still a struggle of mine. His response? Babe, you didn't tell me to keep the foil on. Well, he was just so stinkin' right - How could I be mad at him!??!

So, after my momentary nervous breakdown over my own lack of direction, I did the only thing a girl knew to do ...

I peeled back the layer of cheese. And prayed. Hard.

Praise Jesus. The layer of cheese came completely off with one easy peel. Somehow the noodles were steamed enough (most likely due to the scorched cheese) that they cooked all the way through even without the foil.

I was thankful ... And husband took a sigh of relief. Poor guy. Bless him, Lord. He didn't know what he was getting himself into! ;)

Despite the rough start, the evening was a blessing. Definitely one of the most memorable Christmas Eve's I have ever experienced. It's Friday afternoon - Figured we could all use a good laugh!

As my mother-in-law says: Makin' Memories! [That's for darn sure.]