Coned

I was going through some photos and I came across this fun little something sweet that I made for a playgroup last week. I know I have mentioned my "little ward" {the 11 yr old little neighbor girl of mine who I watch during the week when her mom is working?} Well, last week it was her "Gotcha Day"; she was adopted from Russia and the "Gotcha Day" is the adoptive date which many families will celebrate almost like a birthday. So I decided to try out these cupcakes- in- a- cone. There are lots of different ways to make them, but I just made the cake batter, poured it directly into the upright cones + baked for about 20 min. They turned out to be such a fun playgroup treat because of how self contained they were without all of the messy crumbs typical of regular cupcakes.

This post is kind of bittersweet because last week was my "little ward's" last week of being with us. Her mother had been let go from her job and no longer needed her to be with us. It is a scary economy to be unemployed in, but the mother was quite unhappy where she was, so in a way I am happy {?} for her + hopeful that she finds something better.

*************

I have to admit though, that there were some times since September when I thought I might have bitten off more than I could chew, having another older {often kind of needy} child in my home every day {in addition to my 3 littles}. However, since her mom worked such long hours in the city, she was with us each morning before school + each afternoon until past dinner; she had become part of the family! In the end, I did feel bad about how everything ended {emotionally...and when it came to finances, as I was paid for my "little ward's" care}. But mostly because the change was so abrupt! Life has carried on in usual whirlwind style for us since Tuesday when this all went down {...although in many ways, life has also been much calmer too!} But every now + then I can't help but think that this all must have been quite hard on this little girl, who went from being a part of a big family with a mom+dad, pseudo siblings...even a dog to, well, not. I know it seems perhaps a bit more dramatic when I say it like that, afterall, this little girl + her mom only live right across the street form us. However it is the drastic + sudden change in routine her routine, that has me hoping that this transition goes smoothly for her.
*************
Change can throw you off balance a bit, especially when it is sudden...especially for someone like me who is SO routine oriented. But I do believe {and have experienced time and again} that everything happens for a reason {even if we don't realize it right away} AND that when one window closes, there is usually another that opens. And that is most certainly the case now! However that is another post for another time...

xo.