The Hundred Dresses ~ Store bought cookies

What's (not) Cookin'?

It is so frustratingly difficult to find commercial crackers or cookies that we can eat - and that's without any defined food allergies!  Sometimes it's just plain nice to pull out a box, KWIM?  I haven't been able to make crackers for over 6 months.  Actually, that's not completely true because I made pancake crackers a few times.  Anyway... Here are some cookies that I got for stocking stuffers for the dc.  They are delicious (yes - I got an extra box so I could make sure!).  I got the Butter Crisp and the Almond Thins.  Since we already do so much with almonds I got that box for the family and the Butter Crisps for their stockings.

Ingredients for these loveleyJules Destrooper Butter Crisps:  wheat flour, sugar, butter (18%), eggs, salt, leavening (sodium bicarbonate).  Wow, real ingredients.

Ingredients for the delicate Jules Destrooper Almond Thins: wheat flour, brown sugar, butter (13%), almonds (10%), salt, leavening (sodium bicarbonate).  Again, real ingredients.  I can actually pronounce every single one :).

They are still a treat but at least I won't have to cringe while they indulge (and I can even indulge myself - uh, oh!).  They are on sale for only $2.45 at a local store.  I think each box retails for $3+.


















What's Schoolin'?

Who doesn't like stories with happy endings?  The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes is such a good book for youngsters particularly because there IS NO resolution.  It leaves one with a hollowness, lack of closure, and wishing it had ended differently; that the girls had had a chance to say sorry to the little girl before she moved.  I don't recommend books that are downers to be read *often* or to the exclusion of positive outcome books, but in small doses they are good.  This is a short read, not gruesome at all and addresses the issue of teasing, bullying, and standing passively by while it is happening to others. The interest level is listed as ages 7-10 (another list had 9-12) and the reading level is listed as 5.0.  Youngest dd in 3rd grade who just turned 9 is reading it.

As an extension I cut a dress shape out of unbleached muslin [that I had gotten to make small decorated tilmas but (alas) never got around to doing].  I dug out my Crayola fabric markers and Fabric Mate fabric markers.  After she decorated her dress she glued it into her Reading Response Log. [I'll update this post later with pictures]