Last Updated on February 28, 2024
Before autism turned our world upside down, we did a fair share of entertaining. I loved filling our house with people and feeding them. The more the merrier.
One particular Thanksgiving, I’d invited around 40 people to the house. Although everyone would bring a dish to share, I still had a lot of cooking to do. My neighbor across the street, who was going elsewhere, graciously offered her oven.
So, flitting through my hostess duties, I sent my husband over to monitor the food warming in her oven and to watch football. Ten minutes later, he came back, out of breath. “One of the pans you put in the oven melted and is smoking up their house.”
I stared at him until my brain kicked into gear then bolted across the street to see for myself. Grey, putrid smoke permeated the kitchen area. It seems the plastic tray I’d thrown in the oven wasn’t oven proof. Hmmm.
Thankfully, my brothers-in-law came to the rescue. Two hours later, after dismantling the oven, scrubbing the entire kitchen down, airing out the house, vacuuming, running an ionizer, burning a candle, and leaving three bowls of white vinegar on the counter, the smell was gone. Whew.
When I fessed up to my neighbor, she thought it was hilarious. If I hadn’t told her, she’d never have known.
She did say she’d be glad to lend me her oven again. It seemed like a great way to get her house cleaned …
Jennifer Dyer has an M.S. in Communications Disorders, which served her well in her professional career as a speech-language pathologist. Never did she imagine that her education and career were God’s way of preparing her to be a mom to her own daughter with autism. Today, she enjoys reaching out to other families who face similar diagnoses. As a cancer survivor, carpet-cleaning veteran, and originator of the “Messy House Ministry,” Jennifer feels blessed to share joy, peace, and humor with others facing life’s challenges. She is mom to two beautiful daughters and is thankful to be raising them, serving other families with unique needs, and using her gift of writing and speaking to minister to others. Jennifer is also the author of a youth fiction book series and is trusting God with His timing on publication. Jennifer has been a mom for 11 years. She and Brandon have been married for 13 years.