Our little Angel! She is so sweet and loves to have fun! She can make us laugh and gets so silly that she laughs at herself! It's so cute! She is a very good reader and almost every morning she has quiet reading time and then reads to her little brother who is 16 months younger than her. [she is 8 & her brother is 6]. Since he is becoming more fluent in reading, she spends about 15-20 minutes reading out loud to him and then asks questions about the story, so he can dictate back to her a summary in his own words. [This is how all the children have learned to read on their own-by dictating the story in their own words] Then he chooses a story to read aloud to her [or me].
She enjoys playing housekeeping, baking bread, making cookies, sewing, embroidery and painting. One of her favorite playtime joys is to rearrange her doll house and set up the rooms in different ways. The other day we found her playing quietly, in her room making her doll house look "just right". Here is a photo of what she was doing...
...this is the twins room...see the bunk beds...
...here is the family that lives in her doll house...I think the Grandparents are visiting...
She is quite the little baker! She can make a loaf of homemade bread from scratch! She starts by grinding the wheat [whole, fresh wheat grain] into fresh flour. She measures out all the ingredients and places them into a bread kneading machine. The recipe calls for fresh wheat flour, honey, oil, salt, lecithin, gluten, yeast and warm water. 
She has made some of the most tasty wheat loaves all by herself. After the kneading is finished, she then places the dough into a long loaf pan and allows it to rise at least 45 minutes. After is has risen to double, she places it into the oven and bakes it for 25 minutes and takes it out [with help, because it's hot] and brushes it with butter to make the crust a little soft.
Here is the last loaf she made for us...actually, it's only about 1/2 of it. We will need to make more tomorrow before we go to the deli. Our family goes through about 3 loaves per week.
We will eat them as toast for breakfast, with peanut butter on it or even just jelly. We use it for sandwiches, garlic bread, grilled cheeses and bread-n-butter with dinner.
She loves God with all her heart and has such great faith...today, we had to pick up something at the store and it began to storm. We were stuck inside and she just prayed to the Lord..."Lord, please let it stop storming so all these people can get to their cars and not get wet." All of a sudden the rain began to slow up until it finally stopped. Now, I don't know about you, but that built my faith up. You should have seen her face. "I knew God would do it!" She said. That was all it took for her faith to be built up. So I just wanted to take a moment to share with you some of the precious experiences we have as a family.
Blessings Abundantly to you! Kimi
Greetings! Well, we are nearing the end of our 4th week here at the deli. We have met some of the most precious people in our community. So many of them are repeat customers and we are beginning to feel a special closeness to them. We want to make them all feel comfortable here.
I think we are starting to get the 'hang' of it. I wasn't sure how long it would take for all of us to become accustomed to our new pace, but as the days go by we are working it out together.
We are thankful for all the help that we have been given from some very special people. They have come and given of their time and efforts to assist us in daily routines and general running of a growing business.
Everyday we are growing more and more and it seems that as we trust in the Lord he continues to show us the way in which we should go. We honestly don't know from one day to the next how it will be, but remember..we didn't start this whole thing out by what WE knew anyway. We can not live by OUR eyesight, can we? We must walk the walk of faith, for that is what faith is...'the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not yet seen.' We are ever in his PRESENCE and know that so many of our patrons are also. I believe that is what is bonding us together with our community.
If you haven't been to see us at the deli, and you live close, we would really like to see you and serve you a great meal and spend a little time with you.
Hoping to see you...by faith of course! Kimi
This week has just flown by! It's been a whirl-wind of people, conversations and food. We have had a blast as we plan, prepare and serve to our customers! 
Here are the girls as they helped us in some of the tasks we do.
Dish washing hasn't been a favorite task with any of us, so we have been taking turns at it. 
Sometimes we even take turns at other things like, baking the desserts, preparing the salad bar and portioning the meats.
Thanks girls for a job well done! You have been so much help to us and I just know that God will bless you abundantly for your sacrifice of giving. You can not ever 'OUT-GIVE' God. We love you!
Our first week of business has been great! We started out on Monday opening the doors at 10:30 am and at 10:40 am the phone began to ring. Earlier that morning we faxed out some menus to the local businesses. They didn't waste any time making their calls to place orders. Yippee!! Bring it on!! The first day was a success! We took so many call-in orders I can't remember them all and we didn't even look at the big clock that's up on the wall until late that afternoon. The whole day went by so fast. It was great. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were even better and we spent the days very busy completing orders, talking with the people, making connections and serving meals to our customers. It's been absolutely amazing!! I've made copies of some very old photos to use for decorations. Like I shared before, I went to the Historical Society and Mrs. Ila Ruth Cooley has helped me so much. She gave me so much information and insight to Arab's past. I've enjoyed spending time with her and getting to know more about my town. I love that! On Tuesday, a couple came in and as we began to talk, the lady says, "That's my grandfather! Right there in that photo of the old mercantile!" She was excited about that and had to tell me all about it. I want everyone who comes in this place to feel some sort of 'connection'. Pretty soon they'll want to know more about us and what makes us different. I know they're coming. If we build it, they will come!! Remember that saying? I know it's happening...this is just the beginning! BRING IT ON!!! 
Here is our starting crew. Michelle, Rhonda, Savannah, Jade, Jessica, Camille, Garrett, Micaylah, and Austin. Not pictured:Kendra Garrett bussed the tables and made sure they were sanitized properly for the next customers. Micaylah vacuumed around each table and straightened the chairs, while Austin held the door open and helped bring plates to customers when their order was ready. They all earned tips and got to go to the $Tree this week. 
Rhonda, Savannah, Kendra & Michelle worked with Grant in the kitchen to prepare the various sandwiches and baskets of food. Every sandwich comes with a side and little something extra.
There was much preparation to do in the kitchen before opening time. Potato salad, pasta salad, chicken salad and slicing of meats must be done before opening. We take time to prepare the sliced meats so portions are all the same and correct in the midst of the hullaballoo of lunch time hours. This assures us (& our customers) that we are giving out proper portions.
Camille, Jordan, Jessica and I took food out to the seated customers and refilled drinks while we talked with them and got their opinion of our new place. We didn't have one negative comment. Not even one. Everyone was so glad to have a nice little place where they could come in and sit a while, listen to good music, read while they ate and chat with someone who cared. They have had nothing but wonderful things to say about the Cornerstone Deli! I'm so glad. I actually don't have anything but good to say about our customers. We've already had repeat customers this week too! That's what we want. We even had the local radio personality stop in and eat with us. He told his friend and they came in and she told her friend and this afternoon (Sat) the retired Fire Chief and his wife, who is running for mayor and sits on the city council, came in and we enjoyed a nice time of reminiscing. They ended up knowing Grant from a long time ago. Like I said before, everyone knows Grant from some way or another from some time ago. (remember the carpet deal???) He's just that kind of person and has a very special way about him. Right before closing today, another nice lady came by to get dinner for her husband. She wants to have her Red Hat Society Club meet at our restaurant! How fun does that sound?? I'm sure that will prove to be a hoot! They've asked to schedule it for the first Friday in August. Sounds great with us. They'll have about 16-24 in their party. Ok, I'm not sure where this may be going, but like we shared before, we'll go where God wants to take us. We've already come this far. Catering? Mmmm...party of 24? God has his own plan and I know we will be going there. Thank you for your prayers and support. Let's go!! Living in His Blessed Graces...Grant and Kimi
...this is the twins room...see the bunk beds...
...here is the family that lives in her doll house...I think the Grandparents are visiting...
She is quite the little baker! She can make a loaf of homemade bread from scratch! She starts by grinding the wheat [whole, fresh wheat grain] into fresh flour. She measures out all the ingredients and places them into a bread kneading machine. The recipe calls for fresh wheat flour, honey, oil, salt, lecithin, gluten, yeast and warm water. 
She has made some of the most tasty wheat loaves all by herself. After the kneading is finished, she then places the dough into a long loaf pan and allows it to rise at least 45 minutes. After is has risen to double, she places it into the oven and bakes it for 25 minutes and takes it out [with help, because it's hot] and brushes it with butter to make the crust a little soft.
Here is the last loaf she made for us...actually, it's only about 1/2 of it. We will need to make more tomorrow before we go to the deli. Our family goes through about 3 loaves per week.
We will eat them as toast for breakfast, with peanut butter on it or even just jelly. We use it for sandwiches, garlic bread, grilled cheeses and bread-n-butter with dinner.
She loves God with all her heart and has such great faith...today, we had to pick up something at the store and it began to storm. We were stuck inside and she just prayed to the Lord..."Lord, please let it stop storming so all these people can get to their cars and not get wet." All of a sudden the rain began to slow up until it finally stopped. Now, I don't know about you, but that built my faith up. You should have seen her face. "I knew God would do it!" She said. That was all it took for her faith to be built up. So I just wanted to take a moment to share with you some of the precious experiences we have as a family.
Blessings Abundantly to you! Kimi
