Things that make you go mmmm . . .

We have a new baby in our Ward ( for you non-LDS'ers, read church congregation here). It's a little boy and he's so sweet. He's only a week younger than my newest grandson and his parents brought him to church this past Sunday for the very first time. I got to hold him. He was so tiny and perfect . . . his little hand wrapped around my finger and plucked all my heart strings. I looked down at his beautiful little face and fell in love with this little man so pure . . . so fresh from his Heavenly Father's presence.

His father is a very handsome man, with dark hair and eyes and his mother is from Bolivia and so he was quite handsome, with long dark hair framing his wonderful little face and he lay there so calmly in my arms, without a care in the world, so trusting, oh so very beautiful. I really could have held him forever, or at least until he fussed, which he didn't by the way, but I had to get to Young Women's so the bliss had to end . . .

It got me to thinking about things that make you sigh and pluck at your heart strings . . . like raindrops on roses and long whiskered kittens.



like baby toes, all pink and soft . . . you can kiss each one, one at a time and when you have finished kissing the last one, you go back and start again at the first. You could kiss them forever and ever . . .



Or little puppies that waddle and scamper around your feet and roll over to let you scratch their little bellies so tender and sweet. (I didn't really mean to make that rhyme, but it's fun that it did) . . .



fresh rosebuds, all tightly closed and waiting to burst forth in brilliant colour, laying perfect amongst their leafy beds . . . their perfume still locked in like a special secret waiting to be borne . . .



Big fat fluffy white snowflakes falling down from the heavens, catching on your eyelashes and brushing against your cheeks, soft floating down and silently hitting the ground. You want to catch them and hug them close, but you can't because they fade away and melt, so you just watch in wonder . . .



Tiny kittens at play with each other, tumbling and wrestling at your feet, their tiny noses and soft little paws, and awkward jumps and fumbles, so tender sweet . . . so innocent.



Baby anything is adorable . . . fawns, bunnies, colts, calves. God made them all so very beautiful and endearing. I reckon He did that on purpose so that we would naturally love them and want to take care of them . . .

Funny how all these things and more, the things that make you go mmmm . . . are all fresh from God, as yet barely touched by the world . . . and they are so pure and innocent and beautiful. It sure makes you think . . . or at least it makes me think . . . Heaven must surely be a wonderful place, more beautiful than we can ever hope to imagine . . .

Speaking of things that make you go mmm . . . I baked a delicious raisin pie the other day. I just adore raisin pie. It's one of my most favourite things in all the world. The Amish call it funeral pie for some reason. I think because they usually bring them to funerals or some such. It doesn't really matter what you call it though coz any way you name it . . . it's delicious! This has always been my dad's favourite kind of pie too!



*Raisin Pie*
Makes one 9 inch two crust pie

Crisp pastry stuffed full of delicious, plump and sweet raisins. I could eat this every day for a year and never get tired of it!

pastry enough for a nine inch two crust pie
(your own recipe or store bought)
2 cups seedless raisins
2 cups water
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
3 TBs cornstarch
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice
pinch salt
1 TBS cider vinegar
2 TBS butter
1 tsp finely grated orange zest
Topping (Optional):
2 TBS white sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon



Pre-heat the oven to 200*C/400*F.

Place the raisins, and 2/3 cup of the water in a large saucepan and place over medium heat for five minutes. In a small bowl, combine the white sugar, brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, allspice and salt. Gradually stir in the remaining 1 1/3 cup of water. Mix until smooth. Stir this mixture into the raisins. Cook and stir until the mixture bubbles and thickens. Add the vinegar, butter and orange zest. Cook until the butter melts. Remove from the stove and allow to cool to lukewarm.

Roll out half of the pastry into a round large enough to line a nine inch pie pan with a two inch overhang. Spread the raisin filling inside. Roll the remaining pastry into a round large enough to cover the top. (or you can do like me and make a lattice top, which is a bit more fiddly, but quite pretty) Trim and pinch the edges together to seal and then cut a few slashes in the top to vent. Mix together the sugar and cinnamon for the topping. Brush the top crust with a bit of milk or water and sprinkle the cinnamon sugar evenly over top. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the crust is done and nicely browned. Allow to cool before cutting.