Pancake Breakfast

It's amazing how one simple event can change the course of an entire day, or, the way a person sees things.

This past Thanksgiving weekend my family and I were visiting my mom, just as we do every year. We arrived there on Saturday and stayed until Sunday. My wife and I woke up with all the kids in the morning and made breakfast. Usually we like to make pancakes so we reached for the good old standby - premade just add water pancake mix. There was not enough for two of us let alone 10 of us.

Since about a year ago my wife and I have been paying closer attention to what we eat. We have been slowly introducing new foods, or, rather home made versions of the packaged stuff we would have normally went for. Basically cut out the processed and make it ourselves. So, my wife immediately, without hesitation, suggested we make our own pancakes. I thought sure, why not, my mom bakes things all the time she will have anything we need. I went to the oldest recipe book my mom has, the same one she used when I was a young child. This is when my happy surpirse began. Instead of running away to go play with the other kids my three year old son went and got a stool to help his dad, and he sure did help. We got out everything we'd need; flour, baking soda, sugar, salt, milk, eggs, vanilla, oil, and a bowl and wisk. My son was counting measurments with me, and dumping them into the bowl. He was more than happy to be sitting there with his dad. Each time we would get a new ingrediant out he'd ask me what it was and then he'd repeat what I was saying; "Two and two thirds cups of flour ..." He wanted to do everything I was doing at the time; and he didn't get bored with it.

When it was time to serve our pancakes I was expecting all the kids to not really like their breakfast. After all it really didn't taste the same as what they were used to. But, to my surprise, again, each and every child at the table loved what they were eating; and they thout it was so cool that my youngest made what they were eating.

When we were leaving my mom's house to travel to my in-laws house my oldest, 9 year old, son was talking to me about how it would be nice to make our own pancakes from now on. Then he continued as to how he would like to make cookies and brownies as well, instead of buying them. What further impressed me is how he was comparing the fact that if we bought brownies we would only get 12 in a box and how we could make more for less money.

I was extremely proud of both of my sons at that point; and it was awesome to see the pride in themselves as well - all over preparing our own pancakes from scratch.

Happy Cooking
Jason