"Daddy's Home!"

"There is no greater happiness for a man than approaching a door at the end of a day, knowing someone on the other side of that door is waiting for the sound of his footsteps."  Ronald Regan

I saw that quote on Facebook yesterday, and it took me back to my childhood.  Even into my teenage years, my father coming home from work was always a happily anticipated part of the day.  Eating dinner together as a family was a high priority in our household, and it was a secure feeling, knowing that we were all safe under the same roof for at least that hour or so each day.  It was something I could depend on most days.

When my sisters and I were little, we would hide on him when we heard the closing of his car door.  It was a delightful suspense that made me nervous every time as he pretended to search high and low for his girls.  I knew that sometimes he would be the one to say, "Boo!" to me, and that it would startle the daylights out of me, despite the fact that I was anticipating it.

One time, I read this book where the daughter left her shoes pointed in the direction of her hiding place, so when her dad arrived home, he had a clue as to where she was.  I thought that sounded cool, so I did the same thing that very day, placing my shoes where he wouldn't be able to miss them.  Imagine my disappointment when Dad stepped over my shoes and started looking in another part of the house!  I guess I sort of forgot that he wasn't in on the rules of the game and would just think I hadn't put my shoes away. :)

These days, it's Little Mister who exclaims excitedly when he hears that car door slam.  Sometimes he hides on his daddy, but most times he just greets him enthusiastically at the door.  I still love that time of day, though the roles have shifted, and now I'm welcoming my husband home (I only hide on him if Little Mister asks me to--lol) and enjoying watching my son delight in his daddy's homecoming.


We all make the effort to welcome non-residents of our home when they visit.  Why not welcome the other members of our household when they arrive home?  Whether it be family members or roommates, everyone likes to feel welcome in their own home.  When someone comes home and we are already there, why not stop the task at hand (or mute the TV! ha ha) long enough to smile and greet that person and find out how they are.  "How was your day?" is an often-asked question in our home.  It's an invitation to share the highs and the lows of each other's day and offer encouragement or laugh together.

If you live alone, prepare your home to welcome you at the end of the day!  Before you leave, make sure some favorite music is ready in the CD player.  Get something yummy-smelling going in the crockpot.  Plan who you can call or visit with later on, if you think you'll want some company.  

"Welcome" is such a lovely word. :)

Strawberry Heaven

Yesterday we honored "Strawberry Heaven" (or "Strawberry Shortcake Day"), our annual tradition of eating strawberry shortcake, and only strawberry shortcake, for dinner one day a year.  No, not for dessert after dinner, but for our actual dinner.  This is especially fun since we rarely have dessert after dinner, let alone for dinner.

Normally, our Strawberry Heaven occurs during peak strawberry season, when our own berries are thriving and we pick ever so many and ask everyone we see if they would like to pick some as well.  This year, however, our strawberry patch never thrived and we only picked a handful.  I almost forgot about Strawberry Shortcake Day until I saw strawberries for $1/lb at Aldi this week.  That's the best price I've seen them all summer!

Now, I have in years past bought those ready-made dessert shells you always see by the strawberries at the grocery, and they are fine in a pinch.  I've also made different kinds of cake to use with strawberries, all of which were fine, too.  I had it in my head this year, though, that it was time to try something different.  I wanted to make something, but it needed to be easy, too.  The recipe I used turned out to be our all-time favorite and will probably now just be part of the tradition.  I tweaked a recipe I found online.

Not the prettiest presentation. :)  But yummy just the same. 

It was so simple--its base is Bisquick!  Not the recipe on the box for strawberry shortcake, but a variation of it.  This recipe is sweeter, but not as sweet as those store-bought dessert shells.  We thought this was perfectly sweet.  And you bake it in a cake pan, which is easy and convenient.  It's a winner!  Thought I'd share it with you. :)

For the shortcake:

2 1/3 cup Bisquick
1/2 cup milk
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 425*.  Combine Bisquick, milk, butter and sugar until dough forms.  Press into a round cake pan and bake for about 12 minutes.  Half-way through baking time, sprinkle cinnamon over top.

I let it cool for awhile, but served it when it was still warm.

For the strawberries, I just washed them, cut the tops off and cut the strawberries into quarters or so.  Sprinkled them with a bit of brown sugar (learned that trick--using brown instead of white sugar--from my mom. Tastes yummy with strawberries) and let them sit while the cake was baking/cooling.

To serve:  I cut the cake into wedges, split each wedge into two layers.  On each plate I placed a layer of cake, topped with strawberries and whipped cream (or Cool Whip) and then repeated the layers.

So easy.  So good! :)