If there’s anything I retained from my first job out of college, it’s recognizing the value of the phrase “it’s for the children.”

I was a reporter covering schools in several counties, so I heard that one a lot. One particular superintendent was fond of reciting it every time I had him on the run – which was often, because questions equaled threat to him.

“I’m just trying to do what’s best for the children of this county and I wish everyone would stop criticizing,” he’d say.

I like that line. It’s going to come in handy as we get ready to move – we still don’t know exactly where or when. But I do know Dad will amp up the pressure to get rid of my precious possessions that he just doesn’t understand.

Chief on his chuck-it list will be anything related to cake decorating. He doesn’t get how I can spend so much time over something that’s going to be eaten, though he has started to come around in recent years, since the guys arrived.

It’s “for the children,” after all.

So I’m figuring that my only hope for preserving my collection is to convert as much of it as possible to “for the children” status. The guys love their cakes – making and eating, after all. That means the gear really is theirs – not mine.

And that’s why I dragged out a cake projector – yes, I have a special projector for transferring images to cakes – this week for Boots’ birthday cake. Judging by the clip art that was in the box when I unpacked said projector, I’d say I hadn’t used it since 2002.

But this week I needed it – “for the children.”

OK, the real reason was because this week became so jammed up that I didn’t have time to build Boots the 3D Thomas he wanted and had to settle for a frosting drawing. But we won’t tell Dad that – the projector is “for the children.”

There’s a huge blooper in the cake, by the way, that I missed in my wee-hours rush to finish. Boots picked up on it the second he saw it the next morning. I’ll reveal it tomorrow unless someone figures it out today.

The cake reigned over Boots’ party from one of my four cake stands – the kind you see at wedding receptions. I’ve worked a second into service already this year, and a third I’ll use this weekend. The fourth I can sacrifice because I don’t like it anyway. But the other three have to move with us – they’re “for the children.”

I’m also willing to sacrifice 10 to 15 percent of my dozens of cake pans – mainly the cheapies bought before I realized the joys of professional-grade bake ware.

A computer printer reserved for food-safe ink and used for printing pictures for cakes also can go. It’s so old I doubt I could find a driver for XP, let alone Vista.

Someday, though, I’m sure I’ll have to buy another.

It’s “for the children.”

I wish Mr. Superintendent could hear me now. He’d be so proud.

Copyright 2009 Debra Legg. All rights reserved.

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