The Sweet Smell of Success

Abby and Ally ask me often if they can take over the kitchen and make some baked goods.  (By "often" I mean 6 or 7 days a week.)  Abby has memorized Grandma's recipe for Health bread and Ally is able to whip up a batch of gingersnaps all by herself.  Yesterday, however, they pursued a new challenge.  They asked to try their hands at a Cinnamon yeast bread  using a recipe they found on America's Test Kitchen.  I didn't start making yeast breads until after I got married because I know what an undertaking they can be (especially since my BreadMan died a few years ago), but I obliged their request. 
The entire process took about 4 hours, with rising, rolling, and baking.  I didn't help them one iota -- they did the whole thing themselves. The result: pure awesomeness!

 Here are the happy bakers. (This photo also illustrates why, when Abby outgrows clothing, it sits in storage for a few years before Ally can wear it.)

                                                    Beautiful!

                     

    Mmmm...can you smell how yummy it is?

                               You want one more look, don't you?

Wordless Wednesday

"Well, this is awkward, what with us showing up to breakfast wearing the same outfit."





Best. Day. Ever. (or at least, pretty close)

Wednesday, Feb. 16:
 Day three of my life as a 41 year-old. The snow was long gone and the kids were looking forward to playing outside in the sunshine. My laptop was (still is) unusable while I await a new power cord to arrive, so school was staggered and improvised among the girls.  I heard Matt's phone ring and brought it to him (he was ...ahem..."indisposed" at the moment) and realized it was just a solicitor calling.  Then I noticed his email symbol blinking. He didn't have his glasses on so I read the email to him.
It was a job offer.
He accepted.
He starts Monday.
He received another email: our tax return was accepted and the refund is on its way.  Whew! We hadn't been sure how that would pan out since our only income in 2010 was from his unemployment payments.
His phone rang.  It was so-and-so publisher. The survey Matt filled out last week just won him a $250 Visa gift card; no strings attached. Well, okay - if you insist!
I had to order a new phone for Zac because his broke. I had a free upgrade on my line so I let him pick out the phone he wanted and I started to place the order online.  The phone was free but it's $18 to upgrade the line.  What a rip-off! Matt suggested I call AT&T and see what I could do to avoid  having to pay the fee. I did, and "Gloria" (the customer service rep)  laughed and agreed that the fee was rather ludicrous, then sweetly gave me an $18 credit on my next bill. Why, thank you!
Zac went to youth group that evening armed with his registration form and $28 for the 2-day retreat they're holding this weekend. We really wanted him to be able to attend the retreat so we rearranged this week's grocery budget to cover the money.  He texted us to say that his youth leaders announced the winner of a photo contest they'd had, and it was he who won! The prize: free registration to the retreat.
To top off a nearly perfect day, we watched a previously-missed episode of Burn Notice.
Ahhh...life is good.

February 14: Varnell-entines Day

  Matt always does something sweet for our girlies on this day, and this year he went REALLY sweet!  He baked a cookie-cake last night all by himself from scratch.  He surprised them with it today at lunchtime. I, ever the documentarian, captured the process in pictures.   Our daughters are so lucky to have such a thoughtful daddy!
                                                 

Matt analyzing the best way to spread the dough

                                            

What's with the beater?  Nathan grabbed it from the drawer and waved it in front of the camera just as I snapped the picture!

                                                   

Matt wanted to include all four girls' names but they just wouldn't fit

                                           

Daddy's little sweethearts loved their surprise!

Hello There, Cupcake!

Over the weekend I promised to let the kids make some sweet treats.  The older three had gone their separate ways so it was the younger ones' turn to take over the kitchen.
Here they are, ready to start:

Mmmm...fresh from the oven!

I topped each cupcake with vanilla frosting and let the happy bakers decorate them from that point. (that's dark chocolate drizzled on top.)

 Letting my girls watch "Cake Boss" and "Food Network Challenge" has really paid off!  Look at these works of art!

Snow Days

I just took Zac and Seth to the bus stop. School has resumed after being closed the past two days; but it was actually closed for a total of seven out of the past 9 days!  Last week they attended only on Monday. I spent the next 4 days suiting up the younger kids to play outside; then drying their wet outdoor clothes, the  suiting them up again, then drying...you get the picture.  It was fun for them.  Our neighbor's dog Copper spent some time over here frolicking in the snow while Luke and Katie chased him and squealed with delight.  Even Nathan enjoyed playing out there for small amounts of time.  I took apart his no-longer-used Exersaucer and made a sled from it and the kids took turns pulling eachother.  Too bad we live in an area where there aren't any hills.  
We were surprised by a request to show the house last weekend. We had only 2 hours' notice but we were able to pull it off.  Apparently the buyer really liked it and wants to bring his wife to see it; though we don't know when that will be.  So, we wait....and clean....and organize...and purge the clutter...and hope that we can fix the just-started-leaking kitchen faucet before their next visit.
Last weekend we also had our own little SuperBowl party for the kids. We didn't have a lot to offer them but I think they appreciated the effort.  We set up a taco bar and had snacks that we normally don't allow.  Overall, we enjoyed the festivities even though an outsider might not see it as anything special. (and in case you're wondering, we like both teams that played.  Zac and I were rooting for the underdog while Matt and Seth went for the Steelers.   Seth had been wearing his Roethlisberger jersey all weekend! )
That's about it for an update on the Varnell clan.  Matt keeps on with his job hunt and we just keep praying for a light at the end of this tunnel.
Have a lovely weekend, all!


Katie, Zac and his "Tom Brady" snowman



Ally, "Tom Brady", Katie (with Madi in the background)

Master of Disaster Pt.II

Sigh...it wasn't even 8 a.m. and he found a new way to occupy his time.

The Master of Disaster

^Ahhh....so sweet and innocent.....

^ Learning the ropes...(this is his first self-fed spaghetti meal)



^ He sometimes finds himself in a predicament...




^ But more commonly,  he invites trouble....

 

^Yes, I stood by with the camera, waiting for the events to unfold.

 

^Because even if I prevent this disaster, another one is surely just around the corner.

  

^ Sigh...    I never liked those bookends, anyway.

Well, THAT Was Unexpected!

Hello there!  I'm stopping by for a quick update. The past week has been full of surprises, so let me take a deep breath and tell you all about it!
Tuesday (1/18): Matt got a phone call requesting an interview for a job he'd applied for months ago.  The employer said he'd misplaced Matt's resume around Thanksgiving and had just found it again. (Ironically, it is a job Matt knew he was well-qualified for and he'd been wondering why they hadn't called him.)
Thursday: snow day.  Actually, more like an "ice day". The boys were thrilled they didn't have school. It was completely melted by lunchtime.  Unlike recent years, it's the only bad weather we've had all winter! (Tomorrow will be 62 degrees! Yay!)
Friday morning  I received a call from my nephew Jared.  He is the oldest child of my older sister and I have not seen him since...hmmm...1996? (He would have been about 9 then; he's 23 now!)  Anyway, he called to tell me that he and his sister ~ my 20 year-old niece ~ were enroute from California to Michigan and wondered if they could spend the night here.  Well, ummmm, YES!
He and Elizabeth pulled in around 7:30 that evening and I thoroughly enjoyed lavishing some good home-cooking on them. Jared had flown out to CA to help Elizabeth move back to Michigan and they had been driving for 2 days straight.  The previous night they had grabbed a few hours of sleep in their car at a rest stop in 21-degree temps, so when they arrived here hot showers and warm beds were greatly appreciated.  The four of us stayed up late into the night catching up on all those missed years.  Their 6 a.m. departure came much too soon. I'm so glad I remembered to snap a picture of them before they hit the road!

My nephew and niece, Jared and Elizabeth Winkel

Saturday morning Matt had his job interview. (I must say, he looked positively yummy in his sport coat and trousers.)  He felt good about the meeting and has a second  interview with them next week.  We're hoping and praying and trusting that it will bring a job offer.
Also on Saturday, an agent asked to show our home that afternoon.  It had been weeks months since we'd had a private showing for a potential buyer so we were eager to have the house in tip-top shape and spent the day getting it ready. We left during their tour and when we returned home we finally had a chance to sit down and relax.
Whew!  After all that excitement, I declared that Sunday would be a day of rest for the family.  We all  just took it easy that day: we had a late brunch,  shared family devotions, watched the NFL playoffs and just enjoyed the company of eachother. It was a rare but much-needed luxury.
Our agent, Brent, asked to show the house again on Monday morning at 11:30. We have our cleaning routine down to a science and have it timed out to take about 3 hours from start to finish.  With Zac and Seth at school that morning we had to put a little more responsibility on the girls but everything was moving along perfectly on schedule. That is, until the clients showed up at 10:15, an hour and 15 minutes early.  Yikes!
We aren't supposed to be here when people come through, but the realtor and clients apologized for coming early and insisted we not worry about leaving. The clients (who were in their 60's or so) said, "We know how hard it is to get little ones out the door.  We raised 10 children."  I laughed and replied, "Well, we have 8!"  Ahhh...instant connection. That's good when you're trying to sell something!  They left and I worried that the house had not been ready enough.
I guess they liked it, because that afternoon Brent called and told us that the couple was ready to offer our asking price in cash ...if we could close by this Friday and move out by the weekend.  Yayyy!!!

 Wait......WHAT????

No way.   First, we don't have anywhere to move to.  Secondly, even if we had a place waiting for us, we couldn't move out with 5 days' notice.  Brent told us that the couple also liked another house, which was vacant, and would give an offer in writing to either us or the other owners on Tuesday.  Matt and I discussed it, prayed a lot, and by Tuesday morning we'd decided that we would decline. We know that where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is PEACE, and we did not have peace about it. To try to move a family of ten in 5 days to...nowhere... would be chaos, in the least.  God is not a God of chaos.
So...the couple, who were actually buying the house for their recently-widowed son and his 2 year-old, went with the other house. 
I'm fine with that. I'd rather be in foreclosure but in His will than force something that is outside of His plan for us.
It will all work out. I'm at peace.

And now for your entertainment, here's a video of Katie singing her geography songs.  Abby has taken it upon herself  to homeschool Katie and she is doing a tremendous job!  Abby loves writing out the lesson plans and following a schedule, and every morning she sets up a classroom in their bedroom.  All of this while getting her own online schoolwork done as well! She taught Katie several geography songs as well as Bible verses, and today I recorded Katie's performance of two short songs.  She says "motor" instead of "border" but it's adorable. (It's Abby's voice you hear helping her.)

It might take a moment or two to load, but without further adieu...

Welcome, 2011!

Happy New Year, everyone.  I'm starting the year by taking a short break from blogging.  I enjoy writing  for you and I hope you enjoy reading my posts, but I realize I've become increasingly more negative in my writing.  I'm at a difficult place in life right now and it shows up here -- and not in a positive, inspirational way. That is just the opposite of what I wanted when I started this blog last year.
Please forgive me for the negative attitude I've been displaying lately. I hope you understand my need to take some time off, to get my spiritual walk back on track and build my faith again so I can keep believing  things will improve for my family.
Thank you for your readership.  I won't be gone long!  "Twenty Feet of Grace" will be back soon.

Love, Rebecca

The Obligatory Post About Our Christmas

Christmas 2010:
Much like Christmas 2009, except with a borrowed Christmas tree as our sole decoration and a couple of sick kids.
I made cinnamon rolls and peppermint hot chocolate in the early morning.
Matt made our traditional sausage and gravy brunch in the late morning.
He and the boys played the board game Risk for several hours.
The girls played with their Barbie dolls for most of the day.
Luke was enthralled with his race cars and other new toys.
Nathan...well, let's just say that there's nothing that boy doesn't get into.  He makes motherhood exhausting.
Me -- I was exhausted. I drank a lot of coffee.

Yes, Christmas 2010 was much like last year -- except that last year Nathan wasn't a toddler, he was a newborn. Last year was much less exhausting.
And - last year I assured the kids we'd have a better Christmas in 2010, because Matt would have a job and we'd probably be living somewhere besides Oklahoma.  We might even visit Grandma and Grandpa in Florida for Christmas. Yes, surely this would be the scenario for Christmas 2010!

I was wrong.

I'm not making any predictions for Christmas 2011.


The End.

December 23

Today is what our kids call Christmas Eve-Eve, a phrase they adopted from the movie "Eloise at Christmastime". It is cold and dreary outside with the threat of rain -- not snow, much to their chagrin.
Matt noticed today how our holly bushes are thriving. I remember when we first landscaped the property in 2007, those holly bushes were tiny little things. The following summer we transplanted them from the front yard to the back.  By that time they had matured and were quite heavy to move.

While most bushes flower in the summer, hollys do so in the colder months.  They produce brilliant red berries and the sturdy leaves stay green even in the coldest weather. When God created them He must have known that we would enjoy a splash of color amidst the grey of winter.
I took these photos this morning.  Notice how they're already dressed for Christmas in their red and green!

A Lovely Gesture

Is there anything as tasteful and thoughtful as a homemade gift? Our neighbors Phil and Shannon brought over these goodies yesterday. (There were 10 cupcakes but the kiddos devoured them before I took the picture.)  The entire tray was wrapped in a billow of celophane and topped with a large gold bow. The jam is a labor of love from Shannon and their daughters.  It's so pretty I hate to open it; but I can't wait to enjoy some on biscuits this weekend with my morning coffee. The loaf is a fragrant and delicious pumpkin bread, which is similiar to the loaves I coincidently had baking in my oven when they stopped by.
They also brought over their yellow lab Copper, whom the younger children adore.  It was a bit too cold to play outside with him, but they were thrilled to briefly pet him on the front porch before the unforgiving wind forced everyone - except the dog - inside.
This Christmas season has been different from any we've experienced before for obvious reasons, but this sweet gift from thoughtful friends warmed my heart. I hope that next year we will be the ones delivering a timely gift and boosting the spirits of someone in a difficult time.

Oh, Snap!

I discovered this recipe a few years ago.  These cookies live up to their name -- they really are the best-ever gingersnaps!  We've made several batches already this season because they are so easy to whip up, and they disappear quickly. I decided I need to share the recipe in case there's a gingersnap-lover in you.
Last year I made a few batches extra-special by dipping half of each cookie in white chocolate, but these babies are delish just plain with a piping hot cup of coffee on a cold evening. The recipe also works well for making gingerbread men.
Enjoy!

Southern Living's Best-Ever Gingersnaps

1 c. sugar (recipe doesn't specify but I use brown)

2 c. flour*

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

3/4 c. shortening

1/4 c. molasses

1 egg, slightly beaten

*I use 1 cup of white and 1 cup oat or wheat flour, and add an extra egg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Combine sugar, flour, salt, soda,and spices; stir lightly. Cut in shortening to resemble coarse crumbs. Stir in molasses and egg.

Shape dough into 1" balls and roll them lightly in sugar. (Abby used red and green sugar once and they looked really cute.)  Place on ungreased baking sheets and bake for 10 minutes.  If desired, flatten slightly with spatula after baking.  Remove immediately from baking sheets. Cookies will firm quickly as they cool.

Happy Munching!