Amanda Miller
Columnist
Lettuce Eat Local

No one seemed exactly sure how to serve the oatmeal or when to eat it, unfamiliar with having it on the table alongside the chicken and green beans. It doesn’t really work on the plate since it needs milk, so we set out a stack of little bowls; the necessary brown sugar and cinnamon fit great beside the oatmeal pot, the plate of sliced cheese, and the jar of salsa, even if it felt a little weird.

To be fair, I don’t think any of us had eaten a bowl of oatmeal as a side dish at Sunday dinner — but then again, we’d also never celebrated Benson’s second birthday before.

Well, actually, we did have oatmeal for family lunch after church once before, but it went thematically with the “breakfast for dinner” pancakes and eggs a little better. And what do you know, that was exactly a year ago, on Benson’s first birthday. What can I say, my son loves oatmeal. And we love him, so oatmeal it is!

The rest of the birthday meal we compiled of some of his other favorite foods wasn’t necessarily cohesive, but it was delicious: chicken drumsticks (he loves chewing on bones), roasted green beans (he has gnawed on them since before he even had teeth), chips and salsa (he is his father’s son), cheese (one of the cutest words he says), avocados (he ate half of one in like three minutes flat the other day), and of course, ice cream (he pulled the scoop out of the dishwasher and pointed it at the freezer before we even sat down to eat).

I’m a little embarrassed admitting I wasn’t even really planning to make a cake. I considered it, but then my schedule dictated that I would either have to stay up super late or get up super early to bake one. My love for Benson knows no bounds, but also, you can just eat some ice cream, kid.

Fortunately, Brian and Big Sister and Brother picked up the slack from my mom-fail. While I was gone catering, Brian not only kept all three kids alive and well, but he helped them bake Benson a chocolate cake! He even cleaned up afterwards (mostly); the man is a rock star.

We whipped up a quick fudgy frosting before church the next morning, and the kids were so excited/hopped up on sugar. We used his new birthday skid-steer as the main decoration, and the kids loaded the “mud” frosting with mini-wheat “snowy hay bales” and sugar clump “rocks.” That is my kind of cake decorating! I’m so glad he got a cake after all, and such a fun one. Benson’s face says it all.

But his “wow!” doesn’t even begin to match my soul’s. Brian and I were married for eight and a half years by the time I became pregnant with Benson. I had prayed Psalm 115:9 for years, but my hope was getting tired: “He settles the barren women in her home as a happy mother of children. Praise the Lord.” I knew I didn’t have to make the children for me to love them, but we had also lost a potential adoption and were even having setbacks getting our foster license. Our home was too quiet.

That is not the case anymore. We got our foster license certified when Benson was 17 days old, and rarely has our house been quiet since. Like any parenting journey, ours has been filled with ups and downs and all the things in between — sometimes all within a span of two minutes — but when we celebrate Benson’s birthday, I also celebrate the grace of the God who in the perfect timing settled me in my home as a happy mother of children.

Happy birthday, sweet Benson James.

Quick Fudgy “Mud” Frosting

4 tablespoons butter
2 ounces milk chocolate (or dark, or white, etc)
2 cups powdered sugar
a good pinch of salt
1⁄4 cup cream
a good splash of Mexican vanilla

Melt butter and chocolate in a saucepan over low heat. Whisk in powdered sugar, salt, and cream thoroughly, and bring just to a simmer. Remove from heat, whisk in vanilla, and beat until cool enough to spread — and then do spread right away.
Even if your cake doesn’t feature toy power machinery, this frosting works great, especially in a pinch. No mixer required, just a whisk and a saucepan — and something to protect it from kids’ fingers. Since we’re not creaming the butter, it isn’t as fluffy as a buttercream (now the name makes sense), but it is dense and rich. You do want to pay attention to the timing of spreading it, as too hot and it melts everywhere, and too cool and it starts to clump it instead of spread smoothly.
Prep tips: this makes enough for a 9×13”, so adjust as necessary for different size cakes. Try different chocolates for variety, or a dash of cinnamon if you want to add oatmeal vibes without the actual oatmeal.

Lovina’s Amish Kitchen
Lovina Eitcher,
Old Order Amish
Cook, Wife &
Mother of Eight

January 24! First of all, happy birthday wishes to sister Liz, who turns 54 today, and also to daughter Susan, who shares the same birthday. She turns 27 today. It’s unbelievable that our secondborn is that old already. A lot has happened in her young life, but with God’s help she was able to go on and accept his plan for her. It hasn’t been an easy road, but with God’s help it’s so much easier to handle. 

My husband Joe also had a birthday on December 22 and he also turned 54. Daughter Lovina and I made lunch for the 50-plus workers who work where Joe does at the Metal Shop. After lunch Joe gave us a tour of where he works and what he does. He works with my brother Albert. Joe has been there two years now. It was interesting to see what he does every day. 

Last Saturday our whole family, sister Verena, and sister Emma’s family all gathered at Emma’s house for a delicious brunch. This was a late Christmas gathering. Emma and I take turns hosting it each year since our move to Michigan 19 years ago in March. We were a small group back then but now are a total of 39. The tables were set for 36 in their attached garage and the babies were in high chairs, with the youngest of all, Jazlyn (daughter of niece Emma and Menno), who is 12 weeks old, in her bouncer. 

On the menu was fried eggs, potatoes, scrambled eggs, biscuits, sausage gravy, bacon, sausage patties, cheese, homemade bread, butter, strawberry jam, hot peppers, orange juice, apple juice, chocolate milk, coffee, and donuts. Everyone helped bring something for brunch and/or snacks. 

After dishes were washed, we played bingo. Emma had a table with nice gifts for the winners. 

Then we exchanged gifts. We first made everyone guess to see if they knew who had their name. I didn’t have any idea who had my name. It was son-in-law Dustin. He gave me a board that you can put puzzles together on. It has drawers on the side to put the pieces in. I always wanted one like this, since I like to put puzzles together and so does the family. With more grandchildren, though, the puzzles tend to get messed up or lost. Now I can easily put it away until we want to work on it again. 

Everyone enjoyed snacks and pizza before going home. It was an enjoyable day, but our loved ones were missed. This was the first time Emma hosted our Christmas gathering without her dear husband there. 

Once again God has called some family members home. On January 11, Joe’s cousin Barbara’s husband Johnny died after losing his battle to cancer. He was 55 and left his wife and family to mourn. We were unable to attend, but our thoughts and prayers were with Barbara. They live in Ohio. Then on January 20, Joe’s uncle Roman from Berne, Indiana, passed away. Joe and I attended the funeral. When we arrived at the funeral, we found out that Joe’s aunt had unexpectedly died out in Berne that morning. Nancy was 72. She had been to the viewing of her brother-in-law Roman (his wife Flossie is her sister) the day before and went to the motel for the night with her brother and wife (Uncle Johnny and Susie). Nancy was never married but lived on the same property as Johnny’s do. 

Lord willing, our plans are to attend Nancy’s funeral in Dundee, Ohio, on Saturday. It is almost five hours from here. 

Our sympathy goes to Aunt Flossie and her family and to Nancy’s many relatives. 

Our children all remember who Nancy was. When she came overnight here one time, she kept them entertained. I remember Joseph was just a young boy, and I had told him he had to fix his bed, as I had washed sheets that day. It was bedtime, and Aunt Nancy was here. She told Joseph she’d help him. He was so glad he didn’t have to fix the sheets himself. The next morning Nancy was out playing basketball with the children. There was never a dull moment when she was around. 

May they all rest in peace and may God help their families through this difficult trial in life. We know the feeling well of losing close loved ones. God bless!

I will share the Taco Salad recipe used at the wedding.

Taco Salad

1 pound hamburger

1 package taco seasoning

1 cup chopped onion

1 head lettuce, shredded

1 8-ounce package shredded cheese

1 cup diced tomatoes

1 15–16-ounce can kidney beans, drained

1 16-ounce bottle Thousand Island dressing

1/4 cup sugar

1 9.75-ounce bag Nacho Cheese Doritos, crushed

Brown the hamburger with chopped onions and 1/3 of the taco seasoning. Drain the hamburger mixture. In a bowl, mix lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, beans, and hamburger mixture. In a separate bowl, mix the Thousand Island dressing, sugar, and the rest of the taco seasoning. Just before serving, mix the dressing with the lettuce mixture then top with the crushed chips. 

Lovina’s Amish Kitchen is written by Lovina Eicher, Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife, and mother of eight. Her newest cookbook, Amish Family Recipes, is available wherever books are sold. Readers can write to Eicher at Lovina’s Amish Kitchen, PO Box 234, Sturgis, MI 49091 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply); or email [email protected] and your message will be passed on to her to read. She does not personally respond to emails.