What A Larger Kitchen Means (Help with Pancakes!)

Growing up, my family always had a rather small kitchen.  I often heard my mom mention wanting a larger kitchen, but I didn't really know what that meant.  Every kitchen I had been in was about the same size as our kitchen.  No one I knew had a "larger" kitchen.  Besides, what would you do with one?  (Keep in mind, this was my childish mind speaking.)

I started to understand the upside to a larger kitchen around the age of 12, when I started to really cook.  By this time my brother was already cooking as well.  Two adults and two teenagers could NOT fit in our kitchen at the same time.  In fact two adults could barely fit in the kitchen without getting in each other's way.  Yet still, what did a "larger" kitchen look like?  I had still never seen one.  

Then two things happened around the same time:  My grandmother bought a larger house and our next door neighbor remodeled her kitchen.  Suddenly I knew exactly what I wanted in a kitchen.  I wanted something more that two people could work in at once.  I wanted something open enough that I could teach my children to cook and do dishes.

It was nearly two decades before I got my large kitchen, but the small kitchens I worked in in the interim taught me a lot about appreciation.  Last year, when we were in Washington visiting my FIL, my SIL referred to his kitchen as a "two-butt" kitchen.  That meant that one person could be working at the stove, counter, or sink and there was just enough room to allow someone to pass or stand behind them.  I love this phrase and now use it quite often.  

Our first apartment had a "three-butt kitchen".  Until now, it was the largest kitchen I had ever had.  It was tucked into a corner and had very little counter or cupboard space, but it was open, so it wasn't all bad.

Our second and third apartments were both "one-and-a-half-butt kitchens".  They were not family friendly at all.  I love to cook, but these kitchens made it very difficult to achieve anything beyond small batches.  I found myself doing a lot of prep work in the living room.

Our current kitchen is an estimated "five- or six-butt" kitchen.  That means we had four people working in the kitchen at the same time and there was plenty of room for more.  My husband actually stopped what he was doing and pointed it out.  We both laughed and had to explain it to my sister and mother.

I love the fact that I have a kitchen large enough for many people to congregate.  I also love that it is centrally located, so anyone who is working in the kitchen doesn't feel like they are banished to the back of the house.  To me cooking is a social activity, not a chore.

That being said, I mentioned above that I started cooking around the age of 12.  This is kind of a tradition my parents started that I want to continue with my kids.  My parents started teaching us how to cook at a young age.  By the time we were 12 we were tasked with being able to cook an entire meal unaided (my meal was meatloaf, baked potatoes, and corn).  I think this instilled in all three of us a love for cooking, and an understanding of the importance of independence.

At this point my little guys are only 6 and 3, but it won't be long before it is their turn to cook for themselves. I want their repertoire to go beyond Mac & Cheese and Top Ramen.  That is why I am so excited about them being able to help me in the kitchen whenever they get the chance.

A few weeks ago I decided to make a large batch of pancakes (in order to freeze left overs).  As I was going about my routine of prep work I saw G peeking around the corner.  It suddenly dawned on me that now was the perfect time for them to help.  It was Memorial Day and we had no plans to make us hurry.  So Cooking Lesson #1 commenced.  They both took turns putting in the ingredients and stirring.  Afterwards, both took turns helping me portion the batter onto the griddle (we have one of those cool pancake squirters).

I'd like to think they enjoyed them all the more for having helped make them, but who am I kidding...they love them no matter who made them.

PANCAKES

(Modified from recipe in Betty Crocker Cookbook)

Ingredients

1 cup flour

1 Tbsp sugar (I usually add more, but I like mine sweet)

3 tsp baking powder (I know it's a Tablespoon, but that is how the recipe is written)

1/4 tsp salt

1 egg

3/4 cup milk

2 Tbsp oil or butter (melted)

Directions

1. Heat a griddle or frying pan over Medium heat.

2. Mix together all dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl.

3. Stir in milk using a wooden spoon.

4. In a small bowl, whisk together egg and oil until frothy.

5. Stir egg mixture into batter until smooth.

6. Oil griddle, then ladle batter into small circles.

7. When batter starts to bubble (about 2 minutes), using a wide silicone turner, flip pancakes, cook for additional 1 minute.  Remove from griddle.

To Lamb-Baste A Lender

I am usually not a very vindictive person.  Accidents happen, mistakes are made, and people just have to move on.  However, if someone can help others by sharing their bad experiences, I think it should be done.  This is true for our experience with our lender.  I don't wish to sound whiny or bitter, so here are some points laid out as impersonally as I can manage.

• Our lender (American Financial Resources) was found for us by our broker.  They were the only ones who would finance a manufactured home under FHA guidelines.  Our broker had not had a bad experience with them before so he had no reason to believe this time would be different.

• Despite having a broker, AFR tried to contact us three times on their own in order for us to sign "their" paperwork.  They essentially tried to cut our broker out of the process.

• As our original closing date was approaching AFR began having problems receiving documents.  Our broker was forced to resend bank documents and the appraisal reports on more than one occasion.  The appraisal report actually took three weeks to finally get transmitted properly.

• As our second closing date approached AFR called our broker and informed him that we did not have enough money to close escrow.  This was a mystery to us, seeing as we had enough money in the bank to close escrow twice.  It took two days of arguing (and a second extension) before our broker was able to decipher that all they wanted was proof that the "outstanding" earnest money check was cancelled and replaced with a cashier's check, per their request, at the beginning of the process.

• Once everything was finally in and ready to go AFR sat on the documents for two days, forcing us to request a third extension.

• Finally the documents were signed, the down payment was wired, and all that was needed was for AFR to wire the money to the Title Company.  Once again, they sat on it until literally two hours before our deadline.

While their national reputation is mixed, I did read some complaints online that almost mirror our experience with them.  My recommendation is that if you can get a loan somewhere else, do NOT use American Financial Resources.  If you cannot get a loan anywhere else, find a broker.

In fact, find a broker at the beginning.  It is their job to navigate the paperwork, find you the best loan, and fight for you if things start to turn nasty.  If you live in Salem or the surrounding areas, I highly recommend calling Nelson Lomax at Landmark Professional Mortgage.  He was totally our champion and got the job done by sheer will power.

Home Sweet Home!

It's done!!!  We can finally talk about it!  IT IS OURS!!!

Last week Todd and I signed the papers and picked up the keys to our very first house.  I tell you what, though, it was a huge struggle to keep this one quiet.  Everyday for the last two months I have wanted to shout it out to the heavens and everywhere below it that this was happening, but after the last time we tried to buy a house ended badly, we decided to keep this to a need-to-know situation.

In the end everything happened very quickly (even if the last three weeks seemed to drag on with one drama after another).  At the end of February my MIL e-mailed me a listing for a house in South Salem that she thought we might like.  The listing looked promising so I called Knipe Realty, a complete cold call based on an ad at the bottom of the listing.  For some reason they put me in touch with Nicole Greenspan in their Portland office (a HUGE God-send), and she made arrangements to meet with us and take us around to three or four other houses that Sunday.

Well, it turned out we didn't like the first house, or the second.  The third was nice, but a bit out of our price range.  After two more "definitely not" houses, she told us to keep the third house in mind, give her a few more details about what we wanted, and go and talk to a broker about financing.  She gave us the name of Nelson Lomax at Landmark Professional Mortgage, who just happened to be a customer of Todd's.  He called us that night and scheduled an appointment for that week.

After meeting with Nelson, and getting pre-approved, we decided to not lose momentum and scheduled a couple showings for Todd while I was out of town.  The first house he saw was a manufactured home in West Salem that had come through my e-mail a couple of times.  He told me flat out that he wanted me to look at the house when I got back and see what I thought.  A few days after I got back I walked into the house and from that point on all other houses paled.

A week later we made an offer and discovered that we were not the only ones coveting this beautiful home.  The seller put it to a bid and we came out the victors.  After that it was a matter of getting inspections, appraisals and paperwork all done.  We did discover that the house needed one thing done before we could close, but that was done fairly quickly.

As I said above, it was the last three weeks that were the real nail-biters.  We were supposed to close on April 30, but after major delays with the appraisers, Title, insurance, HUD, and our lender (whom I will lamb-baste in my mind for years to come) we were required to take out not one... not two... but THREE extensions in order to keep from losing the house.  Even with the extensions we still had a harrowing 11th-hour signing that nearly required Todd to take an extended lunch just so we could get everything buttoned up in time to get the keys on the last day of our final extension.  But you know what they say - all's well that ends well.  I never appreciated that phrase until now.  Nothing else matters now except the fact that we have the house!

Oh, you want to know about the house?  Okay, here it is.  The house is 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and 1,782 square feet.  It has vaulted ceilings and an open floor plan.  The kitchen is large with a wrap around counter and opens into the living room, dinning room and family room.  There is a fire place in the family room, ceiling fans in the family room, dining room, and master bedroom, and a WALK-IN CLOSET!  There is a separate utility room off of the kitchen that leads to the garage, which is split level to the house.  The back yard is uneven and needs to be re-fenced, but it has a perfect east-facing spot for a small garden.

I'm sure I will post pictures of my future remodeling of the house at later times.  But until then, thank you Lord, and everyone else who has had a hand in making this happen!