Grandma's Tea Ring Cinnamon Roll

I've decided - since my grandma died a couple months ago - that it timenf0r me to carry on her tradition of making "tea rings," as she called them. It is really just a big, huge cinnamon roll in a ring. She slathered them with the best frosting in the world and brought them to every function and family gathering we had.

So last week I called my grandpa and asked him to tell me how she made them (he made them also). I got pretty good instructions, but also consulted another recipe for sweet dough, just to make sure. I was expecting it to be a flop the first time (because I've never really worked with yeast!) so I didn't care how it turned out.

I also had my trusty little helper, Sydney Jen, right by my side! There is my dough all rolled out.When we were little (about Sydney's age) and were at Grandma's house when she made her tea rings, she would give each of us grandkids our own little bit of dough to make into any shape we wanted. Those are some of my favorite memories . . . so, I'm working on passing them on!

Here is Syd rolling out her own little dough.

(I want to know who took my little toddler Sydney and replaced her with this much older looking girl!)

Loaded it up with butter, brown sugar and cinnamon . . .

Syd is loading her's up!

Here are Sydney's cute little cinnamon rolls, after they rose.

And here is my big ring right before I baked it. I forgot to cut the slits in it like grandma did, but it still tasted great!

Sydney thought it was pretty good, too!

All-in-all for my first time, it turned out better than I expected . . . but still a good amount of room for improvement!

Shopping and Laundry

Just hanging with Syd and Grey at mom and Aunt Kate's favorite store. Time to stretch out my legs a little and stand up.

Mom loaded me up in a basket of my clean cloth diapers!

The Big Hair Cut Day

For over a year and a half, Mya has been growing her hair out for Locks of Love. Yesterday (Saturday) was the big day to get it cut. And, of course, Sydney got hers cut, too (but not for Locks of Love).

Here are the "before" pics:

Kate and her girls!

Here we go (notice in the background Grammy was in town for the occasion!) . . .

Waa Laa! Adorable! Mya is holding her hair that will be donated.

Next up . . . Sydney!

(Look at how old Mya looks in the background!)Syd's new look!

The two girls and their new 'do's. Ashley Brekke, a gal we know from Cornerstone, cut their hair.

The girls love their new hair cuts!

Owls

For the past many, many months whenever Sydney would pray before a meal (which was at least every day), she would say,

Thank you God for the sun, and the moon and the stars and the owls.

Where she ever thought to thank God for owls no one knows. But it is stinking cute. So, for Christmas, I just happened to find the cutest pair of p-poppers with owls on them (and they are even purple!). Last week, Mya just happened to get a pair of hand-me-down, matching owl p-pops from the Zielkes!

I couldn't resist having them pose for a pic!