What a lovely week we have just had - a week on the Gold Coast to attend the wedding of our nephew Ben and his lovely Australian girlfriend Michelle.
In the days before the wedding we spent time with Michelle's family, having a lovely BBQ by the river on the family farm, where we hear Michelle spent idyllic summers swimming after school. It was a great time for us all to get to know one another and they made us very welcome.
The weather on the day of the wedding was perfect, not too warm, and the wedding a coming together of two families from different parts of the world. The ceremony that Ben & Michelle arranged was one that made much of the joining together of the two families and included the two mothers lighting a candle each, followed by them both lighting a family candle together. It was quite a poignant and beautiful moment!
Following the fabulous wedding breakfast and dance the newly weds are now on honeymoon.
A wedding such as theirs with such an emphasis on family got me thinking about all our family traditions. Our girls are very keen on our traditions and still like their Christmas stocking, Easter eggs and special cake for their birthdays, especially if made from the much battered AWW Cake book. The pages now are falling out and the recipe for the vienna cream is virtually unreadable!
Just three of the many!
There is a new copy of the book in the stores now, maybe I will buy the girls their own copies to save a dispute as to who gets mine!
Traditions are a wonderful way of keeping a family close and connected and very important in this day and age when we live in a "throw away" society.
I sure that Ben and Michelle will create many lovely traditions for their new family, maybe I will send them a copy of the "cake" book.............
Vienna Cream
125gms (4oz) butter
11/2 cups icing sugar
2 tbspns milk
Have butter and milk at room temperature. Beat butter with electric mixer till it is as white as possible. Gradually add about half of the sifted icing sugar. Keep beating adding milk gradually. Then beat in the rest of the icing sugar. It should be smooth and easy to spread with a spatula. Colour using food colouring. Dip a skewer into colouring and tint slowly and gradually. Keep covered during use as a crust will develop.
adapted from AWW Children's birthday cake book
