Little Helper

Yesterday, I spent the afternoon baking cinnamon rolls for dinner. I know, healthy, right? I like to serve treats for dinner from time to time, which I learned from Aunt Marsha's example when I heard that she sometimes serves rootbeer floats for dinner.

Kallie was the only child at home and awake at the time, so of course, she wondered what she could do to help me. Although the help from little hands is usually not really needed (and sometimes makes things more difficult), I knew she wanted to feel important, so I asked her if she could pour the ingredients in the pot for me. First, she tossed in the cube of butter. Then I measured out the sugar and handed it to her, cautioning her to hold it steady. As I lifted her up to pour it in, I saw that it was tipping over, and without enough time to do anything about it, I shouted at her that she was spilling it! At the same instant, sugar went everywhere - some in the pot, some on the stove top and floor, and the rest going up in a puff of smoke as it hit the hot burner.

After the smoke cleared, a small ball of sugar still smoldering on the burner, I put Kallie down so that I could assess the damage and figure out what to do next. She immediately ran off upset. Though I was frustrated at the situation, these words from President Thomas S. Monson immediately came into my mind, "Never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved." I quickly called her back into the kitchen, and as she slowly walked back toward me, I saw that her eyes were red and full of tears - a look of sadness on her face. I took her into my arms, the mess still all around us, and I assured her that it didn't matter and that we could fix it. We hugged for a minute or two, and when she finally calmed down, we continued baking together. I'm so glad I overcame my frustration to take the opportunity to love her and show her that SHE is what matters to me!

By the way, the cinnamon rolls still turned out delicious!