Kindness and Cookies

My husband got me thinking this weekend about kindness; do on to others as you would wish them to do to you kind of stuff. In my head I am always the first to think of the other guy and donate to all the right charities. We give clothing away and stuff away, food drives and dinner shares. But given an actual situation where someone is in need right in front of me how would I react? I always assumed that I would step up and I do think that I do usually, but this weekend I was proved a bit wrong.

PS Hubs is not the one in the Bill Cosby Sweater

We did like everyone else and their kids did and went and saw the Lego movie (PS it was awesome) and as we were leaving the theater we saw a lady in her car stuck in the ice and snow. My husband asked if we should stop and help, and sad to admit this but, I said for him to drive on. We had all the kids bundled in the car, bubbie had missed his nap and already had one melt down and dinner time was approaching; excuse, excuse, excuse. I just didn't think we could handle any more in our day. So like a good husband he drove on to the light and left the lady thinking that someone else would stop and help her. Nothing else was said it was a non issue, or so I thought.

As we sat at that light, traffic built up and we had to sit longer than usual, when the light finally turned green for us to go my husband whips the car around like he was enraged/deranged?! I thought that he was upset at something I had said or the kids had done, bubbie was still having a fit in the back seat. He WAS enraged, angered that no one was stopping to help this lady and he had just driven past her too. He swung the car around and parked right next to her hopped out of the car without saying a word and started pushing her car. And then another car pulled over to help. And then my kids watched and cheered for daddy as he helped the lady get unstuck. The simple kindness of strangers working together.

The hubs hoped back into the car, a weight seemed to be lifted off of him now and we moved on with our day not a word said about it. But everyone was smiling.

These little acts of kindness are important and even more important for our children to see us doing them. I know that my husband saw that lady in distress and saw me or one of his sisters, nieces. Sometimes we have to act because no one else will and I am ashamed to say that I just believed that someone else would pick up the slack. Maybe I more ashamed that no one else did? The hubs showed me that you have to be the first to act, never assume that someone else will. A small act of kindness isn't an inconvenience. We all learned a lesson that day, and even if my kids still fight over their toys maybe these acts will stick with them and they will be the first to act next time.

Oh and we made cookies.

Coconut Chocolate Chip

Wet: 

1 1/2 sticks of butter, softened

1/2 cup firm packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

Add in:

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla

12 oz non sweetened coconut flakes

Dry:

2/3 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Add in:

12 oz bag of mini chocolate chips ( or regular but mini are my favorite)

Mix all the wet ingredients until well creamed, then ad you first set of "add ins" one at a time, making sure each is mixed before moving on. In a separate bowl mix all you dry ingredients well then slowly incorporate these into your original wet group. I pour about 1/2 a cup at a time. (should look like the first pic)

Then add you chocolate chips (you could really add anything here or nothing at all, 2nd pic)

Drop by spoonfuls onto cookie sheets in a 350 degree oven, bake for about 10 minutes or until brown. These will come out crisp and chewy and not as coconutty as you would think. 

Then, and this is the important part, share these cookies. Pass on a little kindness.