TJ Hirst

Snowball: v. to grow rapidly in significance, importance or size. n. 1. a. a mass of soft, wet snow, packed into a ball that can be thrown. 2. a small round cookie rolled in powdered sugar.

My parenting light bulb brightened with an experience that also answers the daily question that I ask myself, “Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch us today?”

Developing sisterhood between my daughters is a process—a process that some days seems more competitive than cooperative. The smallest disagreements can snowball into a flurry of emotions that we want to throw at each other.

I have been praying for answers about what to do in the moments when these “snowball fights” are beginning. But the answer came when it wasn’t even snowing, literally or figuraritvely. In fact, not much of anything was going on.

Each daughter came to me looking for something to do. Each was “bored.”

I said, “Let’s find something you two can do together.”

I gave them an assignment to come up with two or three things they could do together, then I left for a few minutes. When I came back, they reported that since they couldn’t find something to do alone, they certainly couldn’t find something to do together.

But then as we talked through it, I said, “Maybe you, eh, could do something with kh that she wants to do like play a game or play with dolls for 30 minutes. Then, kh, you can do something with eh that she wants to do for 30 minutes.”

They joked and laughed about eh, a teenager, playing dolls, but kh liked the idea of doing hair or doing nails. And eh wanted to bake something. They decided to make a dessert together and then give each other manicures.

The best part came when Paul walked in on them in their bathroom painting their nails. He was in shock. It was sheer surprise to him that they were doing that, in there, in the middle of the day, with each other.

And now we have some wonderful Lemon Snowball Cookies and a little bit more sisterly love.

Here’s the recipe from the Taste of Home’s 2005 Contest Winning Cookbook:

Lemon Snowballs
from Audrey Thibodeau, Fountain Hills, AZ

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel (we used orange peel)
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cream of tarter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup finely chopped almonds
Confectioner’s sugar

1. In a mixing bowl, cream butter, sugar, and egg until well blended. Add lemon juice and peel. Combine flour, baking soda, cream of tarter and salt; stir into creamed mixture. Add almonds. Cover and refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour or overnight.

2. Roll into 1-in. balls. Place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned (cookies will not brown on top).

3. Remove immediately to wire racks; cool for 5 minutes, then roll in confectioner’s sugar. Yield: about 3 dozen.

Guest Post: by eh, tj’s 13-year-old daughter

Each day I try to find an answer to this question:

“Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch us today?”

The thing I like about doing this is that it’s more than the actual blessing that helps me—it’s the process. Let me clarify. It began when I had had a little trouble that had lowered my spirits significantly. My mom suggested I start writing down an answer to The Question every day.

So each day now, I sit down at the computer and type. Sometimes it isn’t an immediate answer, sometimes it requires a searching of my day. I think about everything that has happened, or what hasn’t. The process of asking helps me reflect on my life and see what has happened. I recognize that I’m not forgotten.

“Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch us today?”

I told my husband, Paul, about a televised speech I watched listing the five needs of a man and the five needs of a woman. The needs were not the same. Ironically, “the need to talk about the relationship” was second on the women’s need list.

In the midst of our own conversation about “needs” he said, “Your website is something we do together.”

I confess that he’s right. He is my technical other half behind my visible writing presence here.

(Four months ago I didn’t even know what a blogroll was, let alone why I might need plugins.)

After I agreed with him, I asked him to explain.

He said, “It is something I can do for you beyond the usual busyness.”

Something he can do for me!

Despite all the countless responsibilities he has, he regularly makes it possible for me to express myself, not only with technical help, but with ideas and encouragement.

His comment reminded me of something Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley, the past president of our church who recently passed way, said about his wife:

I’ve tried to recognize my wife’s individuality, her personality, her desires, her background, her ambitions. Let her fly. Yes, let her fly! Let her develop her own talents. Let her do things her way. Get out of her way, and marvel at what she does.

“At Home with the Hinckleys,” Ensign, Oct 2003

Thus, I am confessing, especially on this site, that I am who I am because I have this kind of support from my husband. In fact, this website is symbolic of our tied-together relationship.

Frequently, Paul prays in our family with gratitude for the things that I do at home. Now, I will pray with gratitude for all the unknown and unseen things he does for me.

My needs are met.