The "No-Fair!" Flag

It's another dinner. Our family makes a point to sit down and have a meal together every night. This is a routine, the experts tell us, that will almost guarantee higher grades and better kids all-around.

The inevitable bickering between my daughter and stepson begins as soon as their tushies hit the chairs. My husband's eyes roll back and he almost reflexively goes directly to his Happy Place. Frustratingly, this Happy Place is a land where apparently only passive men and Golden Retrievers can go because I am always left behind at the dinner table, trying to referee a nightly game that never has any winners.
It is sometime during my ill-fated discipline attempts that the "No-Fair!" flag is thrown. This is hardly a rare event in my household. We have a blended family, and fairness in a blended family is never truly obtained. If they are lucky, the parents figure it out eventually. The kids however, never give up hope toward this ideal.

"No fair! He never gets punished even though he is doing the same things!"

This is when I look helplessly in the direction of my husband but, alas, Ted has mentally left the building and is sipping pina coladas in Hawaii. At this point, I feel my blood pressure rising and I secretly wish I could press a button and launch my kids into outerspace. Not forever, mind you, just until they hit the age of 18 or so. I would settle for a ticket to Ted's tropical island or at the very least, his drink.

The 'No-Fair!' flag is the child version of the nuclear weapon. Used against parents everywhere, it rattles your fragile sense of normalcy and causes you to question yourself mercilessly.
Fairness is one of those problems you struggle with as a parent. Can you ever really treat all of your children equally when they are of different talents, abilities, ages and (in our case) families?

I have come to a conclusion. The answer is no. No, and we shouldn't beat ourselves up about it. It's time for a little Old School Parenting and the time is NOW. Parents UNITE! Kids, GO TO YOUR ROOMS!
Oh yeah and BTW.....

Life is not fair.

The Best Bread Ever

OK. My mother has introduced me to THE easiest, THE tastiest, THE MOST WONDERFUL, chewiest, crackliest, looks like you picked it up in a bakery-type bread ever. Period. Try this recipe from King Arthur Flour and tell me I'm wrong.


Some basic things you need:

Really big bowl or a 6 qt plastic, food-grade bucket
3 Cups lukewarm water
6 1/2 cups All-purpose King Arthur Flour (use the scoop and level with knife method)
1 T salt
1 and 1/2 T instant yeast

Mix everything together with a big spoon until you have a rough, sticky dough. Don't go nuts. You should have accomplished in only a few minutes of elbow grease.

Let rise, loosely covered on your counter for a few hours, then stick in the fridge. You can leave it in there for days! The longer it stays there, the tangier it gets. Lightly flour the surface of the dough when you want to pull out a grapefruit size lump to make bread. It also helps to spray your hands with some cooking spray. Take about 30 seconds and shape it into a roundish-lump. Let it rest on your counter for 40 minutes or so. Slash it with a sharp knife, and throw it in a PREHEATED oven at 450. Use a pizza stone for best results, but make sure you preheat it in the oven. Also, a small roasting pan slid underneath the pizza stone is perfect for pouring in about a cup of BOILING water when you throw in the bread. Quickly shut the oven door and wait about 30 to 35 minutes. The steam from the water makes the best crust!

Enjoy!

(Adapted from the recipe "No-Knead Crusty White Bread" from King Arthur Flour.com)

JT

Magical Thinking

Here is my script. Please feel free to comment here and THANKS for reading it!~

Magical Thinking -

"What Contemptible Scoundrel stole the Cork from my Lunch?"-W.C. Fields

Your New Best Friend

Writers write, right? I hope not, because I have recently given myself permission in this endeavor, and I have precious few examples of what I have always hoped was a latent but undeniable talent.
So picture me (if you would), approaching this blogging experiment with the big, brown and hopeful eyes of a Golden Retriever. This dog is carrying in its mouth what may turn out to be a dirty sock or a half-eaten banana; I can't really know for sure. Remember, though, its the thought that counts dammit, and it's what I have to give.