In 2014, Theresa shared a blog recipe for Roman’s Beef Vegetable Soup in her blog post: Saying “I love you” with food.  Our family loves to cook and share food with family and friends.  When our friends twin son, Roman, was diagnosed with the genetic disease S.M.A., my mom prayed, cried and started cooking for their family. She has passed down that love of cooking and sharing that love via food with others.   This Mother’s Day, Kristin and I put together meals to deliver and share with the family we would normally have over and a couple of friends.  This was a way for us to deliver and stay connected with family and friends while sharing our love during a time of stay at home orders and social distancing. We had a lot of fun cooking and delivering our Mother’s Day BBQ meals. Our menu consisted of Smoked Pulled Pork, Baked Beans with Hot Dogs, Coleslaw, and Corn Bread Muffins followed by Cheesecake with Strawberry Rhubarb sauce. My bother, Nick, introduced us to smoking in January when we visited them in Bellingham, Washington.  We used a mix of Kansas City Barbecue Rub and World’s Fair Barbecue Rub from the Spice House and smoked the pork shoulders for 14.5 hours until they read 200 degrees internally. The Baked Beans and Hot Dogs is a favorite from our childhood and was one of the first recipes my mom shared on the blog. The Coleslaw was a version tried, tested, adjusted, and perfected in the past year when Jeff and Theresa were visiting Nick and Sarah and baby Zeus. (Recipe Follows) The Cheesecake is the recipe my mom always uses (compliments of Demi Black) with a lemon orange zest crust.  The Strawberry Rhubarb sauce that Kristin and I made with rhubarb from my parents’s garden. (Recipes Follow) Cooking and sharing food is one way to stay connected with your family and friends during this time of social distancing.  If that is not up your alley, check in via phone and stay connected.  Our personal connections are important for both of us and those we are connecting with. Blessings from our family to yours, Will Spear Coleslaw (Jeff, Theresa, Nick Sarah's Recipe) 14 oz package of Coleslaw Mix (or shred cabbage and grate carrots) 3/4 cup mayonnaise 2 Tbsp sour cream 3 Tbsp sugar 2 Tbsp white vinegar 1/2 Tbsp dry mustard 2 tsp celery salt Mix all ingredients and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. Cheesecake Recipe (compliment of Demi Black) Crust: mix using water if necessary 2 cup flour ½ cup sugar 2 Tbsp lemon rind/zest 2 tsp orange peel, grated 2 Tbsp vanilla 2 egg yolks 1 cup butter, softened Chill for one hour.  Roll 1/8” thick piece for the bottom of greased 9” spring pan and bake at 400 until lightly tanned. Let the bottom cool. Butter the sides of the pan and rollout the remaining crust, press to the sides of the pan (don’t bake). Filling: 2 ½ lbs cream cheese (4 ½ (8oz) pkg) 3 Tbsp flour 1 Tbsp lemon juice ½ Tbsp vanilla 1 ¾ cup sugar 1 ½ tsp lemon rind 5 eggs and 2 egg yolks Fold in whipped cream (whip ½ cup of heavy whipping cream). Pour into crust and Bake at 500 degrees for 12 minutes. Reduce heat to 250 and bake for 1 ½ hours. Turn of the oven, open the oven door, and leave in the oven for 30 minutes. Cool and then  refrigerate for at least a couple hours. Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce (Will Kristin's Recipe) 1/3 cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar 1/3 cup water 4 cups rhubarb, chopped or diced 1 quart strawberries, hulled and sliced 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice In a saucepan, combine sugar and water over medium heat and stair until sugar is dissolved.  Add rhubarb and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, until tender.  Add strawberries and lemon juice and simmer for 10 minutes.  Allow to cool for 10 minute and puree.  This sauce will freeze nicely.