Spring Cleaning + Camp Prep {a personal invitation}

It may not yet be spring, and I may not typically do spring cleaning, but this year feels like I am. In February, my water pipes froze and then burst in the sub-zero temperatures north Texas experienced. I ended up having to use a ton of blankets, comforters, and towels to sop up the water that spilled into my house before my dad got the water turned off. Since I didn't have working water for almost two weeks, I fell behind on washing dishes and other water-related chores.

Now that my pipes have been fixed (thanks, Daddy!), my spring cleaning this year is catching up on laundry and washing dishes.

There's a bit more cleaning going on around here, and some reorganizing too, but the water-based chores are definitely top priorities this season.

In other news, I'm also getting prepared for writing camp. The next session of King's Daughters' Writing Camp (KDWC) -- a writing camp for Christian ladies -- takes place in April. This month I'm outlining, doing a bit of preliminary research, and dipping my toes into several different stories I've got in the works. Since I'm dealing with post-Wuhan Virus short-term memory loss, my creativity is struggling more than I'd like. So I'm trying to figure out how to beat that even as memory issues plague me at the moment. The good news is that I've found pockets of inspiration in the last week or so. The writing sessions of 150; 300; and 500 words (averages) have added up to over 5,000 words already this month. I'm shocked by that number, because it's felt like such a huge fight to get each sentence onto the page. While that number is super low for my normal monthly pace, it's a huge milestone for me with my current memory situation.

I'm celebrating with ice cream tonight, because fighting my way to this milestone has felt like climbing Mount Everest.

Would you like to join me in writing camp next month?

#PrayingForTexas and #Harvey2017

by Andrea Renee Cox

Right now it's Sunday evening, and I'm watching The Weather Channel's coverage of now-Tropical Storm Harvey. There is severe flooding throughout southeastern Texas, my home state. Thankfully, I live in north Texas so am safe from the storm's path of severe wind and rainfall. But that doesn't mean I've been uninvolved in the storm.

While I have not been able to physically take part in any rescue efforts, I have done what I can do: pray.

Courtesy of Google Images

All over social media (Facebook and Twitter are the sites I use a lot), I saw Hurricane and Tropical Storm Harvey updates with the hashtags #PrayingForTexas and #Harvey2017. These were encouraging to me, and I started using them too, hopeful that they would encourage those most affected by the storm.

I don't use these hashtags lightly either. My mind and heart have been in a constant state of prayer for everyone in the path of Harvey. I've prayed for safety, comfort, encouragement, and aid. I've prayed for spirits to be uplifted, for souls to discover God's love, and for the storm to dissipate and flooding to recede swiftly.

Summer Has Arrived!

By Andrea Renee Cox

Well, it’s official. Summer has arrived. Maybe not by the calendar, but the temperatures reveal the truth. With temps nearing closer to triple digits by the day, north Texas is warming quite nicely. Which means air conditioning, ice in my water, and sunglasses at all times when outdoors. Sunblock, lighter meals, bug spray, and sand volleyball.

The thing I’m looking forward to most this summer is my family’s Fourth of July barbecue. It might be a small affair with only one other family in attendance, but we make fun memories every year and share lots of food and conversation, squeezing in a cool movie of some sort. And, of course, there’s fireworks. Not my favorite part of the night, never has been, but we can usually see two or three different sets of fireworks from our front yard. Since we live in town, that’s a nice little luxury that comes as a surprise.

Since fireworks isn’t my favorite part of the Fourth of July, would you like to know what is?

Trying new recipes.

Not just any recipes, either. Typically, I test out new dessert recipes around this time of year. This year is no exception.

One I tried just last week, in preparation for the Fourth, is Root Beer Float Cookies. Talk about melt-in-your-mouth delicious! My dad said these cookies bumped up into his top five cookies of all time. I’ll take that compliment. Everyone who’s tried them so far has absolutely loved them. Not only are they great for family barbecues, but they also make great tips for furniture movers, a great barter for a ride (especially if you’re broke and can’t afford gas money), treats for children’s birthday parties, and so many more events. These cookies have been such a great hit, I thought I’d share my recipe with you. Trust me, if you make these cookies once, you better be prepared to make them often… and in large batches!

Root Beer Float Cookies

Cookie Ingredients:

½ cup butter, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon root beer concentrate

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking soda

Filling Ingredients:

¼ cup butter, softened

1 ⅓ cups confectioners’ sugar

1 teaspoon water

1 teaspoon root beer concentrate

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and root beer concentrate. (I used my standing mixer, and it worked great, especially during step two.)

2. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, and baking soda. Gradually add this dry mixture to the creamed mixture and mix well. (The batter will get pretty thick. That’s why I recommend using a standing mixer. It seems to be able to handle the thickness better than a handheld mixer.)

3. Shape dough into ¾-inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 375 degrees for 6-8 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks and cool completely.

4. In a medium bowl, beat the filling ingredients until smooth. Spread on the bottoms of half of the cookies; top with remaining cookies. (I spread a bit of filling on the bottom of one cookie, then immediately topped it with another cookie. This method worked well for me. You could also put filling on ten or so cookies, then top them, continuing this pattern until all the cookies are used. Feel free to try different methods until you find one that works best for you.)

This recipe yields about 2 ½ dozen cookies. When I made it, I doubled all the ingredients, which worked really well. Since it’s so popular, I might even consider tripling it next time.

Now it’s your turn: What summer plans does your family have? Are you planning anything special for the Fourth of July? What recipes do you especially enjoy making during the summer months?

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