It was a memorable day for me. Most women who are 9 months pregnant would want to be in the hospital delivering their baby, but this Easter Sunday I didn’t want to miss out. My family was having a birthday party for my parents, Milo and Virginia Moody. My dad turned 72 on the 5th and my mom was turning 68 on the 7th. I thought it was a great plan to celebrate the day in between.
We weren’t the only ones celebrating that day. April 6, 1980 was the Sesquicentennial of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Millions of members world wide were watching a special general conference broadcast from the site where the church was organized 150 years ago. That was another event I did not want to miss. I enjoyed watching both sessions with my family. Afterward we all headed to Provo where my sister, Patricia, was hosting the party.
The Moody family always has wonderful food when they get together. I had made a special Easter treat to share, Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Eggs. Before I indulged in all the good food, however, I wanted to pass out the contest forms. A baby contest was fun tradition we had that made the arrival of a new baby more exciting for everyone. It was fun to be a winner by guessing correctly whether the baby is a boy or girl, the day they will be born and the birth weight.
When it was time to eat, I had lost my appetite. My chocolate eggs didn’t even appeal to me. I decided to sit down for a while on the couch hoping to feel better. Then I noticed I was having a few contractions. I had so much false labor with my last pregnancy that I wasn’t concerned. I ignored them at first but the contractions kept getting stronger and more regular.
I soon realized I was really in labor, but if I announced it to everyone it would ruin the contest. I kept a smile on my face, enduring the pains until the party was over. As we left, I told Mike I needed to pack my bags. He knew what that meant. My parents volunteered to stay with our other four children and we headed for the hospital. In less than two hours, our little brown-eyed boy was born at about 11:30 PM . We named our Easter baby, Richard Milo Atwood, a special name for our fifth child, third boy.
That was my best Easter Sunday ever. The baby came at the perfect time, my labor and delivery was the shortest and smoothest and natural childbirth was a quicker recovery for me. I was so happy to have my doctor daddy come over and check the little baby that would be named after him. On the Atwood side, he would be the fourth generation to have the name of Richard. The only thing that wasn’t perfect about that day was I missed out on a lot of good food and didn’t get to taste my marshmallow eggs.
Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Eggs
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
2 Tbsp. cold water
1 egg white
2/3 cup corn syrup
1/4 cup hot water
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. flavoring
food coloring
dipping chocolate
Use two 9X13” pans putting about 7 cups of flour in each. Push a clean egg half way down in the flour making 12 impressions in each pan. Set aside. Soften the unflavored gelatin in cold water for about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, beat egg white until very stiff. Add corn syrup and continue beating until thick. Set aside. Add hot water and sugar to the gelatin mixing well. Pour into a double boiler and beat over boiling water until thickened. Add egg white mixture and continue beating until soft peaks form. Remove from heat. Add flavoring and food coloring if desired. Work quickly to spoon marshmallow mixture into egg impressions. Let eggs set for several hours. Turn eggs over in flour to coat lightly so they won't be too sticky to handle. Melt dipping chocolate over hot water. Dust flour off eggs and dip in melted chocolate. Set eggs on a greased cookie sheet and when chocolate is firm, store in an airtight container.
Five Generations: When Gavin Richard Atwood was born Nov. 2006, he was the fifth generation to have the name Richard. It started with Melvin Richard who died in 1973. Pictured left to right: Richard Milo, father holding baby Gavin; Archie Richard, great-grandfather and Michael Richard, grandfather.
