bake it easy
December 6th, 2009
We got our first Christmas cards today. Two from kc (one for me and one for Annalie, which Annalie loved) and one from Grace. Grace is a member of my parents’ church and has known me since I was younger than Annalie. She is one of those sweet old ladies that every church seems to have. She loves everyone, and everyone loves her. Her personal ministry is sending greeting cards for every occasion. When I went away to college, I got Thanksgiving, Christmas, birthday, and Easter cards from Grace without fail, and I wasn’t the only one. Many members of my parents’ congregation have gotten their share of cards from Grace. She writes a letter in every card, too, with news about her husband, her dog, her great-grandson’s latest visit, the weather.
When Annalie was born, Grace sent a card and a small gift. Every Christmas since then she’s sent a small gift for Annalie—usually a book or a little stuffed animal—and every May she sends a card for Annalie’s birthday too. Whenever we’re at home visiting my parents, I make a point of finding Grace after church to say hello give her a hug, and I send Christmas cards to her and her husband, but that’s about all the contact we have. I feel a little guilty sometimes that I don’t make an effort to reciprocate with more letters, but she really doesn’t expect anything in return. She’s sending cards out of love, not expectation. She’s a wonderful lady.
When I opened the Christmas card from her today, I found two ten-dollar bills tucked inside. Inside the card, she wrote that health troubles have prevented her from shopping much, and would I please use the enclosed money to buy a gift for Annalie from her? I shook my head in affectionate exasperation when I read that. Grace recently had a heart attack, and she’s close to 90 years old. I wouldn’t have expected a card this year, let alone a present! But cards are her thing, and like I said, she’s a wonderful lady who gives because she loves.
I read the card to Annalie, and told her that we could go to Target so she could pick out her present from Grandma Grace. Annalie had a few dollars left from some birthday money, so she put that and the two tens into a little blue drawstring pouch that she wore on her wrist. When we got to Target, there was a Salvation Army bell-ringer outside the store. Annalie loves putting money in the bucket, so I expected her to ask me if she could have a coin. Instead she took the pouch off her wrist and fished out a quarter. She held it up, looked at the bell-ringer, then looked back at me with her eyebrows raised, grinning. I nodded, so she skipped off to put the coin in the bucket. Granted, she doesn’t have a strong grasp on just which coins are worth how much, but it still made me happy that on the way to buy herself a toy she didn’t hesitate to give some of her own money away.
We went to the toy section and Annalie wandered up and down the aisles, oohing and aahing over things, checking the price tags carefully. When she saw the Easy-Bake oven she stopped and said, “This is what I want! Can I get it? I have enough money, don’t I?” She did, just the right amount. Annalie insisted on carrying the large box all the way to the registers and reminded me several times on the way there that she was going to pay for it. On the way home, she regaled me with all the things one can make with an Easy-Bake oven. “You can make cakes, and cookies, and even pretzels!” That last one was news to me.
When Annalie chose an Easy-Bake oven, I had two reactions simultaneously:
- Grooaaaannn, not one of these things! They don’t make anything but dried-out cakes, and Annalie can bake with me in the real oven anytime she wants! I’d much rather do that with her than supervise her using this thing.
- Yes!!! I’ll finally get an Easy-Bake Oven!
I always wanted an Easy-Bake oven. My mom had one as a kid and knew how disappointing they were, so she always told me that I would likely be disappointed in it too, and that I was welcome to make a real cake with her anytime I wanted. I knew she was probably right, so I dropped it from my Christmas list. Even so, I always thought those tiny pans and little mixes sure looked like fun.
Once we were at home and had the box open, I read the instructions as Annalie bounced in her seat at the kitchen table, exclaiming over the cool stuff (cake & frosting mix, pans, mini spatulas, etc.) that came with the oven. I knew that it would require a light bulb and I knew we had a container full of those, so I wasn’t worried about it. But it turns out that you can’t use “soft white” bulbs with an Easy Bake oven and those were the only kind we had, those and a billion fluorescent compacts. I couldn’t even steal a bulb from one of our lamps because most of those have fluorescents in them.
We hoppped back in the minivan, bedtime drawing ever nearer, and zipped over to CVS to buy a plain old 100-watt bulb…and we couldn’t find one! Apparently the new thing with light bulbs is to shave a few watts off the usual amount and call it energy-saving. So there were 38-watt bulbs and 71-watt bulbs galore, but no 100-watt bulbs except for one of the “soft white” kind which put me back at square one. I went with a crystal clear 95-watt bulb, figuring it would be close enough. And it was.
Annalie mixed up the cake, spread it in the pan, and put it in the oven. When it came out, she frosted it, added sprinkles, and declared that it was delicious. I guess it would be a good idea to add “Easy Bake mixes” to Annalie’s Christmas wish list!
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Ummmm.
This may sound silly…..but I will happily buy easy bake mixes for Annalie if we can play easy bake while I am visiting.
I have always wanted to try it….and we don’t have them here. :(
We also don’t have normal light globes anymore. Weird.
When I heard the line from Monica on Friends years ago that it was “unreasonable to wait for a light bulb” to bake your cookies, I thought the light bulb reference was part of the joke. Apparently not!
Hey, you could do the Thanksgiving turkey in it next year! ;-)
So awesome! My parents recently gave my daughter her EBO back after it was in storage for years. She can use it with Rose now. Should be fun.
Beautiful bokeh!
Reading this post really cheered me up. Amazing how seeing a child smiling, and really happy, can brighten up your day, even if you don’t know the person. :)
I bet you played with that oven as soon as Annalie went to bed. You can’t fool us. :P
This is so sweet. I love the photos too. Hooray for the Easy Bake! :)
Oh my goodness! First of all, I love Ms. Grace’s card ministry. Sending cards is such an easy thing to do, and it always brings happiness, I should do it more! You simply MUST send her a few photos of Annalie with her awesome Easy Bake Oven. That one of Annalie looking into it, waiting on her cake…so awesome.
Grace sounds like a lovely woman. You should send her a card with one of these pictures in it. :)
I never had an EBO but my cousin got one for Christmas one year she was in visiting. I remember baking dried out cakes with her that year. :) It was pretty cool though.
When I was little, I had a Holly Hobby EBO :) When Lydia was little, she had a Barbie EBO. Sure they don’t make the greatest treats but it sure is fun mixing it up and putting it in the little pan, and watching through the little window.
Have fun with it!
Grace sounds like a wonderful lady! Tell me more about the ease of use for the easy bake oven. I have been thinking about getting it for Josh since he loves to cook. But thought it might be more trouble than what its worth. If you had triplets would it be worth it? Are the mixes reasonable…since I would need three times the amount…just curious to see if you would recommend it to someone like me. :)
SO FUN!! I never had one as a kid. I may have to get one for Emily…
Oh, what fun! I personally am hoping Sam will ask for a dollhouse and a Lite-Brite, the two things I always wanted and never got as a kid.
Great pics! Glad BOTH of you are having fun with the EBO. Although Annalie can bake with you, there is something to be said for having her own oven and things just her size.
Emily got her easy bake oven last year and I we went on a light bulb search too, ha! I don’t know if I got the wrong bulb but our easy bake just makes yummy smelling hockey pucks. It’s fun to use though.
I think that Miss Grace is awesome. I’d love to be organized enough to do what she does.
You guys are lucky to know someone as wonderful as Grandma Grace! You’re also lucky to have a girl…I always wanted and never had an Easy Bake Oven and now, with boys, I won’t get one any time soon. Maybe with my grandchildren? Anyway…here’s a website with recipes to make your own Easy Bake Oven batters and doughs:
http://www.budget101.com/kids.htm#Easy_Bake_Mixes
And that is the nicest Easy Bake Oven I have ever seen.
Congratulations Annalie on picking out your gift and making such a wonderful choice. Have lots of fun baking with Mom.
I had an Easy Bake and I loved it. It didn’t matter how horribly things turned out, because I MADE THEM WITH MY OWN MINI OVEN. Never underestimate the power of mini. I love seeing the newer versions of the toys I used to have. They really do make things cooler with time, huh?
I cannot tell you how excited I was to see the first picture of Annalie and the box. I am eagerly looking forward to when Isabelle wants one. I have fond memories of baking cakes in little ovens.
My mom never used to cook with me and my sister or make cakes. So, when we made tiny cakes with a Holly Hobbie oven, I thought they were delicious. But are they really? Did you try it? My memory of the cakes may not live up to reality.
Oooh Isabelle just walked up and said she wanted one!
That’s fun! I always wanted an Easy Bake oven as well, but my mom told me I could bake whatever I wanted in the big oven with her. But I always kind of wanted tiny cakes!
I got one of those for my niece two years ago and she loved it! This year she’s graduated up to the Girl Gourmet Cake Bakery which looks like tons of fun. I hope Annalie loves her Easy Bake as much as my niece did. :)
I had one of these when I was a kid and I was never- not once- disappointed with the results. Even the time I melted the pushy thing to the lightbulb. My brownies still were MINE and they could have tasted terrible and I would have eaten them.
PS- My mom refused to spend thousands on the actual mixes. She always bought the tiny “Jiffy” boxed from the grocery store cake aisle and I used those. They worked fine and were way cheaper.
I loved the part of the story about Grace. What a wonderful, loving woman – through the simple things. It made me decide – here and now – I want to be a Grace when I’m almost 90. (I just need to find people! :) )How thoughtful and warm for her to think of so many others throughout the year. Thank you for sharing that, Bethany!
I really wanted to get an Easy Bake Oven for my niece for Christmas, but she already has one! I guess mixes it is!
I’m glad Annalie liked getting her own card! :) funny, b/c I just saw some of the pretzel mixes at the store the other day. my sister really wanted an easy bake oven one year… I think she used it once or twice and that was it. ah well, Annalie will probably always remember it — and her friends will be the ones saying they always wished for one hehe :)