TROPICAL PARADISE

‘Where did you get the recipe?’ I asked, eyeing the mini pancakes on my plate.

‘It’s yours’, replied Cinnamon. The one I had taped on the inside of the cabinet by the stove. She explained that she made half of the recipe and had to guess on the method since the paper on which I scribbled down the recipe last summer left out how to actually go about combining the ingredients. She also wasn’t sure what to do with the egg whites as the ingredients stated ‘3 eggs, separated’. So, she simply left them out. Despite that, the pancakes tasted great and we ate them all.

The girls set out to do something truly special for Mother’s Day this year. Sharing my kitchen is nothing I am used to but this time I am glad I agreed. Saffron spent a day creating an entire menu with printed papers separating the options for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and drinks. Cinnamon was the chef whilst Saffron played the part of the waitress at Tropical Paradise restaurant. I was speechless at their creativity and ability to put all of this together so well.

For breakfast, I ordered a fruit salad and mini pancakes with a side of strawberries. Cinnamon even made me black tea. Lunch was a vegetarian sandwich with avocado, cucumbers, tomatoes, and Swiss cheese on toasted ciabatta bread. For dinner, Saffron asked that I make pizza dough so that she and her sister could put together the toppings which included olive oil, fresh thyme, shallots, tomatoes, feta, and green bell peppers.

Dessert was what the children call ‘chocolate pillow cake’, one I had made before but to which I made changes once again. This time I left out the light muscovado sugar and used only caster sugar. I also simplified the mixing method to where only the whites used a hand mixer. The chocolate mixture was combined with a whisk. The cake was topped with whipped cream made by Saffron. She ended up devouring two pieces of cake after dinner and licked the cream bowl clean.

For activities after breakfast, the girls organised a scavenger hunt which ended in a spa treatment. The level of detail and effort was once again surprising. They set up their bathroom with a printed menu of treatment options to include a hand and facial scrub and a massage complete with Zen music playing in the background, a candle, and a mini fountain. I choose a 15-minute back and shoulder massage.

My son felt bad that he forgot it was Mother’s Day today as he thought it was next weekend. But he ended up making me a card and a colourful chalk drawing on the balcony later in the day which included the London Eye and Big Ben. His plan is to draw the Tower Bridge tomorrow and is making me something from Lego bricks.

Now that I realise what the children are capable of, I can have them participate more in meal preparations. In addition, I will be more aware to write my recipes with them in mind as to the steps needed to successfully execute the recipe.

As parents, we tend to want to hold onto our children as long as possible, not realising that they are growing up quicker than we would like and developing their own identities with unique personalities. They surprise me often these days. I am proud of them and grateful that I have them in my life for they are the reason for Mother’s Day.