Ice Cream For Dinner

Baskin Robbins Ice cream for .31 cents a scoop?

Oh yeah baby, we are all over it.

When I was a kid, we didn't eat out that often. When I was a kid, a trip to McDonald's, Bob's Big Boy, or In and Out, was a very special treat. When I was a kid, dinners were in most every night. In my early years, we sat around the plaid Formica table in my parents kitchen and ate home cooked meals like pinto beans, that my mom would stew all day long, garnished with sour cream and cheese, why that image comes to mind so strongly baffles me. I didn't particularly care for the beans, but I often think about them and connect them to the kitchen of my childhood. I remember coming home on a winters evening and smelling the beans and walking into the dimly lit kitchen and seeing my grandma's huge aluminum pot shining under the hood light like a museum exhibit. I can see the placard placed next to it, it would read: Here in lies Judy's beans, she got the recipe from a Relief Society weekday meeting about nutrition. She serves them often.

"We are having beans again?" I would say in a flat tone.

"They are so good for you!" My mom would say with a smile. I don't remember complaining about them, but I do remember forcing them down. I think it was at this early age that I made the discovery that if it was good for you it didn't necessarily taste good. But she cooked other things too. Other very tasty things like Chicken enchiladas, stuffed cabbages, flank steak, shishkabobs, tacos, the ground beef kind with a Dr. Pepper on the side.
"I want some Dr. Pepper!"

"Your too young." my mom would say. I surveyed the table and saw that my older brother and sister, who are nine and ten years older than me have one.

"What about them?" I said complaining.

"It isn't good for your teeth." I did have a lot of cavities as a kids but it wasn't because of soda because I never got it.

"When you get older you can have one." she says laying down the law. Why is that? Do your teeth all of a sudden get stronger when you are older. Do our bodies do a better job metabolising caffeine when we are older? Isn't it just as important to take care of your bodies as an adult as it is as a kid. I don't know but I now use the same logic with my kids. The point is, we never ate out so when we did it was really memorable.

I remember one particular time we were able to eat out and have dessert out on the same day. I don't remember why, but I remember being told while we stood at the counter at Baskin Robbins that I could get three scoops. Three whole scoops. I remember bouncing up and down and traversing the counter looking at all the ice cream that they had to offer. What to choose? I am sure I chose the standby chocolate chip, chocolate mint and some other fail proof choice that would guarantee yummy goodness. My brother, the yidda guy, on the other hand was an adventurer when it came to trying new things. He still is. I remember one time in particular, we had an Italian family over for Christmas Eve dinner. In Italy, it is customary to have fish on Christmas Eve, so our Christmas Eve meal was spaghetti with crab marinara, and oysters, the raw kind. I barely had the courage to eat the crab marinara( crabs were like big water bugs to me, not very appetizing) But my brother was sucking those raw oysters down like there was no tomorrow. When Rob chose his three scoops, he chose, and I remember exactly: licorice, pumpkin pie and bubble gum.

What an event. Three whole scoops of ice cream of our very own, each scoop piled up one on top of the other like the leaning tower of Pisa.

So Wednesday, after the primary activity, I offered the Baskin Robbins deal to my kids: "So, what do you say, do you want ice cream for dinner?"

"What? "Lily says, incredulously, "Are you serious?" she doesn't believe me because I am notorious for making the kids finish their dinner before they get dessert, and she is usually one that is negotiating how many bites she has to eat before she can have some.

"Yes, I am serious. Shall we do it? Shall we have ice cream for dinner?"

"YES!" all three cheer. "Ice cream, ice cream, ice cream," through the open windows.

When we got there the line was out the door. I wanted to get there as soon I could, thinking that the line would only get longer as the evening progressed. It only took about 30 min before we were served.

What was every ones dinner choice?
Emma: chocolate chip, bubble gum, chocolate mint.
Lily: Strawberry cheesecake, chocolate mint, chocolate chip.
Owen: two scoops of cotton candy.
And for me, the old standby, chocolate chip with chocolate peanut butter, and cookie dough. Mitchell got the same as me as he was not there to choose himself. All five dinners for only $ 4. 89. The deal of the year.

A new tradition.

I can't help but notice that Lily and Emma are both eating their ice cream by tilting their spoon upside down. My father and my sister and I do the same thing. I find it curious. Is it because our tongues can't wait for the ice cream so we subconsciously plant it on our tongues first so we can get that taste asap. Is it because we want to scrape every last drip off the spoon before going in for another bite, or is it some type of genetic trait like being able to do a taco tongue or having our ear lobes attached as opposed to detached. Really, curious minds want to know.

Whether we ate our ice cream with our spoons up or down, I am confident we were all satisfied.

The Aftermath

All this talk about the plunge when in fact the real fun is in the aftermath: our visit to Uncle Scott and Auntie Adie's house. It's tradition. . .in fact I am officially making it official that we will forever after go to Uncle Scott and Aunt Adie's house to jacuzzi, have ribs and play tennis forever more--it's in the books, set in stone, after the plunge, forever more. We all know that is the only reason Will got out of bed that morning, and Richard for that matter as well: Will for the jacuzzi, and Richard couldn't wait to watch the Rose Bowl with Dan and Scott. Adie promised to have the jacuzzi ready for us when we got there.

On the way we stopped at Room and Board to see if they had anything left over from their once a year clearance sale. Another part of the tradition. They get rid of all their floor models and clearance items at unbelievable prices the day after Christmas. As the weeks wane the prices keep dropping. But as was expected most of the items were gone. However they did have some great pieces, if we were in need of pieces, since I am not working we definately don't need pieces.

Once we arrive at Scott and Adie's and my boisterous group bangs on the door and they are greeted with open arms and triumphant cheers from Auntie Adie, we snack on some food and prepare for the jacuzzi. The water temp is 100 and is steamy just the way we wanted it. The kids were only in but for a few minutes before dares began to surface. . ."Emma, I will give you this quarter if you jump in the pool." The pool is not heated mind you and is probably in the 50s. Emma thinks about it for about 2 seconds and agrees. You see she is not fazed by cold, in fact she seems to thrive on it, plus she is motivated by money. Up she hops and drops in the pool like a little torpedo with her toes pointed toward the bottom. It doesn't take her long to get out, but she happily returns to the jacuzzi where the rest of us stew to recieve her pay.

"I want to get a quarter. Can I get a quarter?" Will enthusiastically calls as he ascends from the jacuzzi.

"Of course you will get a quarter."

"Don't worry Will, I won't push you in like last year." The same dare was posed last year and William, unsuspecting at the time, and not planning on entering the pool was pushed in by Lily. His shriek still rang in our memories as he hopped out of the pool literally as quickly as he had fallen in, the look on is face was complete terror and pain. He cried as he clambered back into the jacuzzi for comfort. Now, Will was going to do it on his own. He stood at the edge of the pool looking in, gaining courage, waiting for that perfect moment of serenity when he could make the choice to take the plunge. . . when Owen snuck out of the jacuzzi and pushed him in giggling. Instant replay from the year before--same shriek, same look, same rapid, super hero speed exit from the water, only this time it was Owen's name that spilled from his lips like a sad song on a violin as he came to my arms for comfort. We all laughed. Will took it bravely, although he did not like it one bit. I don't know if this will play out as part of the tradition or not, we will have to see.

Well before I knew it all the kids were jumping from the side into the pool. They started out close to the steps where they could get out easy but as the dares increased or as their bodies began to numb, they moved further from the steps to the center of the pool. Emma kept hopping in and recalculating what I owed her. I think she might have gotten up to $6 dollars or something. That girl is driven when it comes to money.

Lily, who always has a load of fun ideas, gathered the two foam rafts and began to make a boat where they could move around the pool without getting in the water. She would take passengers and use the pool cleaner pole as a paddle. She did a great job maneuvering her makeshift boat and I knew I needed to take her to the Island of the Blue Dolphins where she could really show off her talents.

After much coaxing Owen finally got on the boat and let Lily take him for a little Ride. Chloe, Aunt Adie's labrador, was ever watchful of the kids. look at the concern in her eyes. After we sat stewing for an indefinite period of time we all got out and got our cozies on. Time for dinner. Richard was in charge of the ribs and the were delicious.

Thanks Scott and Adie for your wonderful hospitality and for always welcoming us into your home. We love you.

New Years 2009: 2nd Annual Polar Bear Plunge

Triumphant new members of the Polar Bear Club: Lily and William

9:30 a.m. . .

"ohhhhhhhh," I don't want to get up. The house is quiet, but for the cartoons that are softly playing on the TV. Owen has been up for an hour! it doesn't matter that he went to bed the night before at 1:00 in the morning, he is up and atom, ready to go the next morning. It is mornings like these that you are grateful for cartoons. Nine-thirty in the morning: we need to leave in an hour if we want to get to the beach in time for what we affectionately call the Polar Bear Plunge. Last year we got there at like 11:55 and counting. Emma and I were literally running, tearing off our clothes as we ran to make sure we were there for the count down. We made it but with only a couple minutes to spare. I didn't want that to happen this year. We wanted to be there early.

But as I lay in my bed. . .as I sank deeper into the blankets, I wondered if it was really worth it? Ohhhhhhhh the bed was too cozy, my eyelids were too heavy, the blankets embraced me in a warm hug. . .polar bear plunge? what was I thinking. Then I rolled over and saw the warm sun seep its light beyond the barrier of the blinds into my room, beckoning me to get out of bed. It looks like it is going to be a beautiful day. . .I haven't been in the ocean since August 2nd. . . Emma and Lily are really excited. . .gotta get up. The plunge wins.

So I swept the house waking each child and gathering swim suits, warm clothes, beanies, cozies, snacks, drinks, etc. "Let's go. We have to take the plunge!" Emma and Lily are up and focused. It doesn't take much to get them going. They are excited to continue the tradition.

Will, on the other hand, is not so sure. "Will, let's go. We are gonna take the plunge!"

"No way, not me. I don't want to."

"You don't? I want you to. You can do it, your tough!"

"No, I am not going to." He is getting up though and is excited because after wards we are going to Uncle Scott and Aunt Adie's house and they have a jacuzzi. I asked Owen if he wanted to but knowing full well what his answer would be. He doesn't often get in the water in the summer months.

It doesn't take long to get out. Not much prep needed

but brush teeth and hair and I am not sure if that was even done. The kids pile into the car and we head out. The roads were wide open so we got there with time to spare, but as we approached the beach, the warm sun began to disappear behind some thick marine layer. . .bummer! but the adrenalin was pumping and once parked we quickly made our way to the crowd with fifteen min. to noon. I would say that there were twice as many people there this year as compared to last year.

We all took off our clothes to prepare for the plunge. Or I should say the girls took off there clothes. I did for a moment and then put them back on. I don't know if the older we get our nervous system becomes more acute or what, but I felt that cold air and the girls seemed un bothered. We stood around waiting for the remainder of the time while we listened to rose bowl princesses and the emcee of the event introduce us to volunteers from the community. I don't mean to be disrespectful, but listening to them drone on while my body was fighting the cold was like listening to Charlie Brown's teacher speaking in slow motion. "Whaaa Wa Whaaa Wah Wah." I was beginning to think that last years accidental plan of getting there just as they are counting down was by far the superior plan for next year.

With a couple of minutes left, the girls and I went down to the starting line and made our way to the front. The energy was building. I was prepared with my olympus water proof camera to try to capture the event and snapped a couple of shots of the girls and I before we hit the water, when all of a sudden, I see William stripping his shirt and sprinting over to join us. His smile was hUGE! "Yeah!" we all cheer. "Will your awesome!" When your taking the plunge, you don't want to do it alone. It's like your a plunge pusher. . . You want others to do it with you: Your not sure why your doing it, your not sure you want to do it, your not even sure if it is good for you, so you want others to do it with you. . . like a narcotic, That's what we were, plunge pushers, and when Will gave in to the pressure, we were all there to congratulate him and give him slap on the back.

The count down begins: 10, 9, 8, All participators are counting, 7, 6, 5, all supporters are chanting4, 3, 2 all watchers from the pier are joining and 1. . . RUN! watch out, if you have little ones you may want to protect them, in fact Richard had that very thought for Owen as he saw the mad dash of hundreds of almost naked people, of all different sizes, running right at him. Gladly he protected Owen even if he did lose track of us in the water. However he did get this shot of us as dash began.Look at our faces. We are actually smiling as we run towards that frigid water. The temp by the way was 56 degrees (like a spring day in Minnesota) I love Emma in this shot. She is right out in front. She is beating all those grown men to her right. She is the fastest runner in her class for the third year in a row. I asked her the other day if she was still the fastest runner in her class and she said, "Yes mom, I won every time except for the time my shoe fell off and I had to put it back on." That's my girl!

Look Emma was in and plunged before anyone and WAY before I could have the camera ready to capture her. Will and I were still making our way out to the water.

Will fighting his way through. He is taking it like a man.

I was the last one to actually take the plunge.

Emma and Lily making their way back to the beach. You don't spend much time in the water but we did spend more time in than last year.

Lily and Will heading in.

Right at this point Will is feeling the cold and wants to get out quick. His bravery is quickly surrendering to the c-c-c-c-old and some whining is starting to surface. But wait, "Let's try to get one group shot of us in the water. . ." I say. What was I thinking. Needless to say the shot didn't happen.
Here we are back at the beach. Will is still smiling, He was pretty proud of himself and feels pretty confident that he can do almost anything now because he is a polar bear. You gotta click on this photo and see how red his little body is from the water. C-c-c-c-c-cold!

Welcome 2oo9.

A great family tradition.

Your all welcome to do it with us next year. The more the merrier! We don't know why we do it. We don't really know if we want to do it, we don't even know if it is good for us, but we want you to do it with us.
C'mon, it won't hurt you, just this once!!!!