Book Fair Rant

I hate that they sell toys at book fairs.

It drives me nuts.  It makes me the bad guy because I won’t let my daughter get a book with a toy attached.  (I’m so mean.)  When I was kid, I loved the book fair because it meant I got to buy, *insert sarcastic  gasp*, a book.  The next adventure of Trixie Beldon or Island of the Blue Dolphins.  Not some piece of crap silly cat book with a necklace of a cat attached.  This was just after spending 6 dollars at a  Jamba Juice fundraiser for two drinks.  (Yes, I am crabby and cheap.  I think this is well established.)  After I made the “you need to pick a book that is your reading level or we’re going home” ultimatum, she still tried, asking if she could have something “cool”, too.  *sigh*  She picked up a wiggly pen thing to show me what “cool” was.  I told her if she could tell me what it was, then she could have it.  Quite a gamble, I know.

I won.  🙂

And now the girl is sitting on the couch completely absorbed into the world of Flat Stanley. 

 A *insert gasp again* chapter book.   With very few pictures.

Grins.

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Chocolate Chip Pancakes

I have always made my pancakes from scratch.  I’ve tinkered with the recipe over the years and have a relatively healthy one in its current incarnation.  Except for the chocolate chips.  Heh.  Now everyone knows that I am a Lazy Cook and I’m sure are wondering how the heck making pancakes from scratch is being lazy.  It’s not in the making, it’s how many I make.  And freeze.  And defrost when my kids refuse to eat anything before school.   I loved chocolate chip pancakes as a kid and my kids adore them, but now the thought sort of turns my stomach.  At least they’re eating.

So here it is:  Chocolate Chip pancakes 2010

Makes about 24 pancakes

Dry Ingredients: 

1 cup of all purpose flour

1 cup of whole wheat flour

3 tablespoons of ground flax seed (I started adding this as a postcancer thing.  Supposed to be good for keeping it away.)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

Wet ingredients:

1 teaspoon lemon juice

2 cups 1 percent milk

1/2 cup applesauce (I used blueberry applesauce today)

2 eggs

1/4 cup agave (I’m guessing.  I just sort of squirted some in.)

3 tablespoons canola oil (this can be omitted but I think it helps hold the pancakes together better)

 Blend dry ingredients with a whisk in a big bowl.  Using the same whisk, beat wet ingredients into another bowl (I hate washing more than one whisk.)  Dump wet into dry and whisk together.  Pour on a hot griddle ( I can fit 6 on my stove griddle) and artistically place chocolate chips onto the pancakes in an aesthetically pleasing way.  Or just sprinkle them on like I do.  It’s time to flip when the batter starts to look a bit waxy and the bubbles don’t disappear when they pop.

Happy Chocolate Chip Pancake Kid

 

Other Happy Chocolate Chip Pancake Kid

Aida

So part of the reason I’ve been blog AWOL for so long is I’ve been playing pit orchestra for Aida (Elton John, not Verdi). 

1)  Dear SIR Elton, is it really necessary to write the entire musical alternately in the keys of  G flat and B major?  (6 flats and 5 sharps, respectively.)  Nobody likes those keys.  They’re just mean.

2)  I love playing pit orchestra.  Especially ROCK band pit orchestras.  It fulfills my high school dream of playing in a band.  And these kids were good.  I’ve never seen kids follow singers as well as these did.

3)  High school kids are wonderfully weird.  Yes.  This is a giant shoe pile.  I’m not sure why.  It was a pit orchestra solidarity thing.

4) No pictures of the show this year.  Didn’t get to see it.  Because I was in the pit.  Heh.  Sure sounded good though.  🙂

Thank heaven for skinny arms.