There's none of it at all!

"The funniest thing about it is the way it likes to grow:

Not at all like proper children which is always very slow.

For it sometimes shoots up straighter like an India-rubber ball

And it sometimes gets so little that there's none of it at all."

-Robert Louis Stevenson

Though Robert Louis Stevenson was, of course, referencing his shadow, I think this quatrain fits well with the current state of my life. (and probably the lives of many of you gals who are graduated.) It seems like we're either sitting with so much free-time we're about crazy, or the schedule merits none at all. I'm about to enter a none-at-all stage, and I'm looking forward to it.

Since we're a "political family" (i.e. don't sit around with our heads in the sand), autumn is not so much pumpkin-spice lattes as it is campaigning. And in Virginia this year we have a really vital race. The spot for governor is up for grabs and the nation's (collective) eye is on the race; whoever becomes governor will swing Virginia one way or the other which will effect national elections in the next few years. You'll likely remember me speaking of the SAT's last year (student action teams) with Generation Joshua; they have called for two early SAT's in addition to the normal ones over election-week, and are trying to gather 200 students for each round! I have volunteered as a leader for those two (as well as the normal one). That means that from the 19-24 I will be in Northern VA, and from October 3-8 I will be in Southern VA. In addition to this, we have our beloved County Fair this weekend, a family camping trip planned for the week after the second early SAT in October, and the girls go to camp mid-October. (I am not taking that full week out of my time for obvious reasons. :D) Of course after October comes election-week with the normal SAT. I'm really hoping and praying that we can get Ken Cuccinelli elected as our next governor; he's a Catholic, homeschooling father with excellent values who stands for everything I am concerned about as a young, intelligent, and voting single woman. Please be praying with me that the fondly-termed "Operation Shock & Awe" will change the course of Virginia history--most candidates whose races our SAT's helped push through election day credit GenJ kids with tipping the final scale. I know it has worked before and I pray these kids' efforts will help push Ken Cuccinelli through. I am SO excited! If you've never done something like this you can't understand the energy and thrill of working so closely with the stuff that changes American history. Seriously now. Get involved with politics; if the country has lame leaders, it's really our fault.

Off the political topic, I am also teaching English Literature to Leah and creative-writing lessons to Leah, Anna, and our cousin Emily. (This will have to be slipped here and there through cracks.)

Also in the background is my online shop, The Warren, which hasn't exactly taken off with a bang because of the fact that I've had no  time to publicize it. So if any of you felt like helping me out with that...(blog buttons, mentioning on your blog, following The Warren on Facebook... :) The business is finally beginning to boom (after three years of nil), praise GOD, and we are having to work Saturdays to keep up. I am still doing billing and occasional office-related things in addition to going out on the work-crew now and then. (the other girls and Benj still carry the brunt of that.) This month I got to do it all at Starbucks. (hence the picture above. Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate is divine.) Oh yes. And I'm writing a Cinderella-novella (25,000 words) which I have to finish, get critiqued, edit, and send into author Anne Elisabeth Stengl's contest by December. The reason I'm pushing to do this is that the best five stories will be published by Rooglewood Press in an anthology dubbed: Five Glass Slippers. Of course A.E. Stengl will get all the money from it, but the winners have have glory, honor, and free publicity in connection with a very successful author in the Christian-fiction circles. So I'm writing my best and shoving it in the ring and we'll see what outcome the Lord has for all that! It would be a lovely break into the realm of publicity for my writing which is currently-unpublished-but-seeking-to-remedy-that.

So yes. I'm bonkers. This fall is bonkers. And I'm loving every minute of it. ^.^

Doughnutty

On our rare most recent library trip, Sarah got a Cake Boss cookbook. Now, I don't know if any of you have watched Cake Boss, but our family loves it, and it is on several of the kids' bucket-lists to have birthday cakes made by Carlo's Bakery. :D Benjamin is quite practical about it:

"If I start saving up now, it'd only cost...y'know...like a thousand bucks to get a simple birthday cake."

Well-said, dear sir. But thank heaven for Buddy Valastro's willingness to make a Cake Boss cookbook so little boys like Benjamin don't have to break their bank to satisfy their sweet-tooth. (I don't charge) Though, come to think of it, Benjamin is ten times (quite literally) as rich as I am, so it might not be that long before he could afford a Carlo's Bakery cake. ;) To further clue you in, in a proposed road-trip to NYC which will probably never happen, a large stop on the way will be Hoboken, NJ for the original Carlo's Bakery where we hope we don't have to drop, say, ten bucks on one cannoli. But of course since Labor Day was Monday, Tuesday felt a tiny bit (in our heads) like autumn. And I got a hankering for cider doughnuts. I can pin-point the exact first time (and one of only two) I had cider-doughnuts:
It was at Taft Farms: a country vegetable-fruit-bread-stuff stand in the Berkshire mountains from which Uncle Lon and Aunt Heather bought much of their food during the summers when they lived up there so Aunt Heather could work at Tanglewood. That one summer--the beautiful, glorious week--when Sarah, Daniel, and I went up to visit, Uncle Lon drove us to Taft Farms and paid the laughing girl in the baseball cap for a white paper-bag with the grease-spots coming through and in that bag was heaven on earth. We bought the doughnuts one more time on that trip (sometime after Boston and Fort Ticonderoga) and I've never been that close to the Other Shore since. ;)

because you all need gratuitous cuteness in your day.

Well. All that melodrama to say, I thought to myself that we'd make cider-doughnuts while Mama was at a funeral. (morbid, I know) But it appears that the cider part of cider-doughnuts actually has something to do with cider and not just a reference to the best coupling of beverage with bakery-treat. C'est la vie-- we'er all excited for fall around here, but I'm not exactly sure that Food Lion sells apple-cider yet. Anyway, Sarah came to the rescue by telling me that inside that Carlo's Bakery cookbook (don't you love how New England rallied for us?) there was a recipe for Buddy's doughnuts; they didn't require cider (woo-hoo) and they didn't require butter (woo-hoo). And we happened to have a tub of lard on hand for frying, which never EVER happens. (WOO-HOO)

I made up the dough with Levi, and had lots of fun watching him watch me. (and help a bit) The batter looked like dubious cookie-dough, though, so I shoved it in the freezer per instructions and lived as a doubting Thomasina for the next several hours.

Jimsie was none too keen on the loud mixer

But afterward he insisted on turning it on...

...and messing about with a teaspoon and a bit of flour...

Awwww, itty bitty toe-prints in the spilled flour!

We rolled out the dough per Buddy's instructions and cut out the doughnuts with a mason-jar lid and a little medicine-cup....there was nothing left to do but fry them up! So Sarah and I melted and heated lard from our friends' farm, figuring that people used to cook doughnuts in lard, so why not? :) We also double-checked with the rest of the cookbook and saw that since cannoli can be cooked in lard, it's not like the doughnuts would come out tasting like bacon. (though isn't that the trend right now?) I don't understand that....the other day on Google+ I saw a picture of a friend's ideal burger: a patty smushed between two glazed doughnuts....the opposite of what I would imagine to be tasty. Oh well. To each his own culinary adventures, oui?

After removing the doughnuts (and holes) from the lard, we rolled them in cinnamon and sugar. Yum! 

Jimsie approved.

So did Grace

I would have liked to see a bit more flavor inside the doughnuts, so next time I would like to try an honest-to-goodness apple-cider-dough recipe, but these were amazing when fresh off the stove and paired with a cup of French Press coffee. Bon appetite! 

Old-Fashioned Doughnuts:

(makes at least twelve doughnuts)

I have edited the recipe to reflect how I did it

3 c. all-purpose  flour, plus more for the work surface

1 c. sugar

3/4 c. milk with a tablespoon of lemon-juice dissolved inside

2 extra-large eggs

2 Tbs. coconut oil

2 tsp. baking power

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt 

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Lard for frying

cinnamon & sugar for rolling

1. Mix half the flour with sugar, milk, eggs, oil, baking soda and powder, salt, and cinnamon in a mixer. When smooth, add remaining flour.
2. Turn dough onto plastic wrap and chill for at least one hour or up to three days. Dough will be TERRIBLY sticky and not look anything like you think doughnut-dough ought.
3. Remove dough from fridge and let sit till room temperature
4. Flour work surface and work half the dough into a 7-inch square, 1/2 inch thick. Fold in third, the roll it again into a 7-inch square. (this doesn't have to be precise)
5. Punch out doughnuts, or roll balls by hand. (repeat with other half of dough when ready)
6. Heat lard in pan till it is about 1 1/2 inches deep. Heat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Drop doughnuts in two or three at a time and fry till golden brown on both sides, flipping with a wooden spoon when one side is done.
7. Remove from pan and dab excess grease off onto paper towels. While still hot, roll in cinnamon and sugar.
8. Repeat with remaining raw doughnuts.
9. Eat hot with a cup of French Press coffee, and enjoy! :) 

In Which We Play At Being Orphlings

A 25-year anniversary...

Five days....

Eight kids on their own...

(Well, some of us are no longer kids)

A cold in the head...

A toddler that should be weaned but still nurses a couple times a day for comfort's sake...

A camera...

An "empty" house...

Sneezing/coughing/stuffynose...

May I reiterate the "Five Days" thing?...

Oh yes. 

This is the life of the Heffington kids this weekend. We are going to be baching it here while Mama and Dad celebrate their 25th with their first trip away (without a baby in tow) since they had Daniel, almost 23 years ago! I am looking forward to this weekend and the funny videos we plan to shoot. It's going to be amazing! I am dosing my cold with cinnamon-and-honey and PG Tips, so here's hoping it withers away quickly! We've got fun things planned and of course I know my uncle and aunt are right across the field so if I need any adult help I've got it. But I think we'll be just fine, and it's kinda fun playing The Boxcar Children for a whole week. Keep your eyes out for any videos that make it through production! ;)

The Fragile Beauties

I am sorry I've been so silent of late, but if you saw my hypothetical calender which has included a good friend's wedding and 5 family birthdays in one month, the launching of my literary-themed online shop called The Warren, a re-inspiration for my writing, lots of reading, and the cranking-up of the family school-year, you'd realize there really has been very little time to devote to blogging. Along with this craziness has been lots of thinking, on my part. I don't know why, but I've been in a thoughtful frame of mind recently; such spasms strike me now and again and I think Plato himself would be rather proud of my philosophizing abilities now and then. ;)

From the thinking has sprung a little thing that I am Being Aware Of that I call The Fragile Beauties. I guess you could say that this Thing is like 1,000 Gifts, or even the book Sarah got for her birthday: Cold Tangerines. But The Fragile Beauties trend began for me when I would find certain pictures on Pinterest that had no place on any of the rest of my boards, but that I could not ignore. Pins that captured the little pieces of everyday life that I try to remember to notice. Or things that I've always wished I had a macro-lense to be able to photograph. Things like this:

 

 I haven't read Cold Tangerines , but I know that my Fragile Beauties are a bit less broad a list than 1,000 Gifts. Where the latter paints a broader picture to be grateful for, The Fragile Beauties are the strictly aesthetic blessings. I'm a visual, touchy, feeling, all-five-senses-roaring girl. So I love to notice the beautiful things here on earth that we've been given in abundance. The beauties that are gifts but oh so fragile because they won't last. (Perhaps we'll have even better ones in Heaven?)

Psalm 103:15 says:

"As for man, his days are like grass;

as the flower of the field, so he flourishes

for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,

and its place remembers it no more."

Fragility. Humanity. Earth-ness. It's all passing, and little of it will last, huh? But when I cared to think about the fragility a bit deeper, I saw a thing I usually pass over when reading those verses. Over in Mattew 6:28-29:

"...Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these."

So you see, man's existence on earth might be a little blinkity-thing, but it's still a thing, for a while at least, we flourish as those self-same lilies, and Jesus acknowledges the lilies are beautiful. We're also told that "Every good and perfect gift is from above", and that everything God does is to His glory. So I'm sitting here thinking:

"Gosh; The Fragile Beauties. One life to find them in. My Lover who delights to watch me notice: ...um...game on."

 I'm finding The Fragile Beauties, and I'm marking them mentally, posting them on Instagram (username: heirloomrosebud) with the hashtag: #thefragilebeauties, pinning them on Pinterest, and gathering in the beauty strewn about that so many people pass by. I'm pointing it out to other people, smiling over it myself, thanking God whenever I catch one of those fleeting, fading, lovely things, and enjoying every moment.

I hope you'll join me in this. 1,000 Gifts, Cold Tangerines, The Fragile Beauties; whatever you call them, let's go searching.

Firstly, lastly, in-betweens

"In my life, there's been no one like him anywhere, anywhere..."

But despite the absence of that elusive person (no, not the Scarlet Pimpernel), life has been full of new ideas, new plans, and fun things. First off all, since posting about Maryanna's wedding, two friends have got engaged! Though all the details aren't reported yet, I think their guys may have popped the question on the exact same day - wild, isn't it? I still can't believe that Mama was totally right when she used to tell me that it would all happen at once. So, here's the short list of everything that's been going on in my life these days:

Singing: Anna, Benjamin and I bought the sheet music to Newsies and Anything Goes for Leah and Sarah so we've been pounding out jazzy NYC-style show tunes on the piano ever since. "If I need a headline, I'll make up a headline and I'll say anything I hafta. Cuz it's two for a penny, if I get too many, Weisel just makes me eat 'em afta..." There's not much that is more fun than crowding around the piano and working out parts to our favorite Broadway shows...it's such a cool thing to do with the family. Funny thing is, we four girls have worked out almost all the parts to to an all-guys' song. (Well...barring the nuns.)
And speaking of nuns, Daniel bought Sarah The Sound of Music for her birthday. We haven't seen that movie since our VHS player went out, and going back to watch it now that I'm grown was hilarious. There are so many clever lines that I never understood as a kid.

Max: "There's nothing I hate more than a thief."
Capt. VonTrapp: "Oh Max, do try to learn to love yourself."

Definitely a favorite with our family, and I watched with contentment as the younger girls fell in love with the movie just like Sarah and I did as kids. :)

Working On: With the advent of so many weddings (and expecting at least one more engagement by the end of the month!) I have realized that my days of waiting for money to find me are utterly over.

"In terms of money....we have none." -Despicable Me

 I've got to do something to pay for all these weddings I am attending/participating in, don't I? Aunt Christy and I are seriously contemplating starting up a floral-design business together. We're good at it; pooling our talents, we have enough experience; plus, we're talking about flowers here: I love flowers. So, though it's not final, I am kind of excited about the possibilities. In addition to this, I am so looking forward to announcing one more thing by the end of the week. It's nothing big, but I do have one hint for you. Two words: The Warren.

Reading: A Sweet and Bitter Providence by John Piper, Dragonwitch by Anne Elisabeth Stengl (fabulous so far...quite allegorical), Eats, Shoots, and Leaves by Lynn Truss

Waiting For: Different plans that are currently up in the air. The full proposal story from JULIA! Money-making schemes to pounce on me. Summer to finish! A letter in the mail. The next adventure.

Loving: Strawberry ice-cream; I really didn't realize how much I love real strawberry icecream till Levi insisted on having some for his birthday. New love-story right here. Kate Rusby's music. G2 pens. Reading other peoples' writing. Learning the intricate words and parts to new songs. Re-listening to the Transfer Conference messages. Summer storms! (speaking of which, my cousin took a stunner shot of lightening!)

Needing To: Get back on my shrinkage-program. Humph. Oysters. All sorts of grouchy-sounding words that mean Too Much Cake. Be purposeful in memorizing scripture; a weakness on my point. Write a letter to Grandma June. Work at making money.

So. These are the current events: God is great, I am weak, He works in me anyway, and life is beautiful. What more could I want? Hope your Monday is fabulous!

(if you'd like to follow me on instagram and see day-to-day things in pictures, you can find me as heirloomrosebud. I don't clog your feed, but you do get to see bits and pieces. :)

Wedded Bliss

Last weekend I had the immense privilege to help my Aunt Christy with the flowers for the wedding of my sweet friend, Maryanna Strautmann nee Thompson.

We have done the flowers for weddings and graduations before, and I always forget how much I enjoy it until I'm back in the thick! We always joke around that we should start a business, she and I, since we do it as a ministry and have never made money ...maybe we should....at any rate, I so much enjoyed myself, even with the crazy-long days, and I don't think I've ever seen a prettier wedding when all is said and done. Along with the wedding flowers themselves, we were in charge of assembling a team and prepping the reception: cake tables, food tables, guest tables, and head tables. I don't have many pictures of that part yet, but my cousin Matthew took some stunners of the flower-work! We used all fresh flowers except for a couple blossoms at the tippy-top of the arch. I despise fake flowers with a passion so I was excited that the bride and her family had a budget for fresh blooms! :) I'm rather pleased with how everything turned out:

Hey look! That's me holding the bouquet!

I love weddings, and being able to help make them beautiful is such a privilege! After all - is there such a thing as too many flowers? I am inclined to say nay. My favorite part of my responsibilities? Pinning the boutonnieres on the groomsmen...I get to see them all up close. ;) Actually, I loved teaching the bridesmaids how to hold their bouquets nearly as much. That, and chasing the ring-bearer every few minutes to fix his flower.  That child... :D

A beautiful wedding for a beautiful couple! L'Chaim!

Thanks, Gents

Sunday, August 4, 2013

Dear Gentlemen,
      When you hear the word 'gentlemen', you probably shrink inside, thinking we expect you to be some huge Titan of gallantry or the archetype of good manners. Maybe we do appreciate that in a man, but today I just wanted to thank you. Some people think the race of gentlemen has died off. I can't agree entirely, because you are here. I wonder if you realize how much you effect me and many another girl just by being considerate, amiable, and genuine. Not all men are gentlemen, but when we women meet one, we know him for what he is immediately.
     Did you know we were that keen? Well, we are.
     I feel that good things cannot be commended enough, and fine men deserve as much recognition as the rakish fools who take up so much space in the news without having done anything worthy. So here's your little space of glory: here I want to tell you the things that you do right, and (coming from me), the things you do that make girls breathe again and think, 'There are real men in the world after all.' This is a letter for the gentlemen I know, and their kindred whom I have not had the blessing of meeting. These are the things you do (and are) that make me smile:

      I love when you laugh. I love when you make me laugh.

      I love your friendship--you don't know what a treasure it is, knowing young men who are actually interested in appreciating my soul, not what I can give them in exchange for a little attention.

      I love looking across a room when someone says something funny, and reading mutual hilarity in your eyes, and then laughing about it with you later.

      I love your sensibleness, and the way you guide conversations into useful courses that a girl might never have thought of, were we discussing the same topics.

      I love your useless bits of information that expand my intellect in ways I'd never looked for. (cannibal forks, anyone?)

      I love it when you open a door for me--I realize you know I could do it myself and I am thankful you do it anyway, just out of kindness. You're not being a Chauvinist, whatever people might say.

      I love it when you take time to talk to me and ask questions, like you really want to know what I think.

      I love it when you remember little things we discussed a long time ago and bring them back up when I least expect it.

      I love it when you have good handwriting.

      I love it when you offer to accompany me on errands I've been asked to run.

      I love it when you have massive pools of talent, but I have to find out from someone else (or personal observation) because you don't talk up your good points to impress me.

      I love when you've read the same books I have, or new ones that you make me read.

      I love when you disagree with me and make a good case for your side of a question.

      I love when you quote Shakespeare, or my favorite movies. (or Cabin Pressure. ;)

      I love when you admire plain women, because I know you're seeing the important side of them.
   
      I love it when you obviously have taken care with your appearance.
   
      I love it when you seem to have forgotten you are looking very sharp.

      I love it when you make little kids laugh, and laugh with them.

      I love it when you ask if you can dip me when we dance.

      I love it when you give a genuine compliment with no hint of flattery inside.

  These are only some of the things I see in you, my dear gentlemen. And perhaps the thing I am most blessed by is that moment that comes along periodically where you remind me of My Man--the man I probably have not met yet, but whom I can see will be one of you. So thanks, gentlemen. You really don't get enough notice from the world in general--I didn't want to stay silent when you're such a huge part of how I can remain a lady myself.

All of my best,
        Your sister,
                      Rachel Heffington