A BUN-DLE OF YUM

“It is better to give than receive, but sometimes I really need someone to give me a hug.” Monique Mulligan

After writing about women needing women friends earlier this week, it was ironic that the very next morning I really needed a hug from a friend due to some Teenage Boy Moments. Two friends delivered the much-needed “There, there, everything will be OK” platitudes; poor Blue Eyes tried to comfort me with well-meant (and true) advice, but it wasn’t quite the same.

Ever have those inexplicable moments where you are struggling to hold back a flood of tears and you know that if anyone asks “What’s wrong?”, the dam gates will burst? This quote summed that teary morning perfectly.

“I’m not fine. I need a Hug!” Author unknown

While at the supermarket picking up fruit for a storytelling session I run, the store manager saw my tear-stained face and kindly added, no questions asked, a box of chocolates to the fruit basket. Just as good as a hug, in my book.

Today I received a ‘gift’ of another type – three packages of hot cross buns from Bakers Delight to taste test. It really is “each day a gift” lately! The flip side is that I had to eat them (so I could rate them, of course), preferably with the family. It was a bit of a sacrifice to share the choc chip ones, I have to say.

As far as comfort food goes (and this week it’s any excuse for that), these buns hit the spot this week. Usually I would heat them up, but I had trouble holding the hordes back from my beautifully arranged plate. As for savouring the taste, it’s hard to “savour” something if you gobble it down. The kids demolished the chocolate choc chip buns sans butter, gave me a thumbs up and disappeared. It’s Friday and they have a free run on the computers, so talk? As if. Music Man did hover around a bit later wondering when the next packet would be opened.

I sat with a book (reading Scared Yet by Jaye Ford because reading The Four Week Energy Diet would have killed the mood) and slowly ate my bun, enjoying the taste of the melted chocolate and butter for as long as I could. One word: yum.

This morning we broke out the choc chip hot cross buns (deliciously soft and chocolaty, the family favourite) and the traditional buns. Spicy, sweet and soft, best with the Saturday paper and a cappuccino was the vote from Blue Eyes and I; best eaten quickly and chased down with a glass of milk was the kids’ vote.

Now a gift like this is rarely ‘no-strings attached’, so I have a little plug for Bakers Delight here: for Aussie readers who have a heart for helping sick children, Baker’s Delight will donate $1 from every six-pack of hot cross buns sold on March 24 to children’s hospitals across the country. They are trying to raise $104K (now, that’s a lot of buns).

I also have a treat for three lucky readers who share this post on Facebook page and comment on this post below – the first three to do so will receive a $10 Bakers Delight voucher. Sorry, this one is only available to Aussie readers. No more writing now, eating.