A Few Random Reviews

Dreyer's Grand Lite Fudge Tracks Ice Cream: G bought this by mistake, thinking it was a simple fudge marble (I'm in year 4 of my campaign to get him to read labels), so imagine our surprise to bite into this ice cream masquerading as fudge marble and finding little chunks of chocolate. What's more...when we bit into these little chunks of chocolate, peanut butter flavor came out! Now, I'm not a big fan of peanut-butter/chocolate combos. They're OK, but I'd rather spend my chocolate calories on chocolate/caramel combos. However, I've found myself buying Fudge Tracks on purpose now, even though I know it's not really fudge marble. There's something very pleasurable about being surprised by those tiny chocolatey peanut butter cups - they're so small you're not really ever sure when you're going to get one. (Wow, could I change tenses or points of reference any more in this paragraph?)

Sesame Street: Do we need Zoe? We already had Elmo, the whiney preschooler, so what's the point of Zoe? Whatever happened to Snuffleupagus? I know I'm dating myself when I reveal that I remember when he was introduced and for the longest time only Big Bird could see him. Gordon and Susan were just about to have B. Bird committed for hallucinations when Snuffley finally revealed himself. My suggestion for Zoe disposal (I've decided we don't need her) is to have Steve "Crocodile Hunter" Irwin as a guest and have him feed her to the alligators and then say, "It's nature's way!"

Our Diswasher: We have a Kenmore Quiet Clean Plus. Although it cleans dishes, it does not dry them, despite the supposed existence of a half-hour long "dry" cycle. And, if cereal (esp. Honey Bunches of Oats) has hardened on bowls for several days, it has difficulty dislodging the nuggets from the ceramic bowls, which shouldn't surprise anyone except G (another campaign I've been working on). And you have to use a monkey wrench to turn the dial to get it to start. Since there's a drawer right next to the dishwasher in which a wrench rests, this is not a huge problem.

Annie's Natural Cheddar and Shells: Nice, mild cheddar flavor, good fake orange color, and the shells hold the sauce very conveniently. However, for best results, mix the powder into the milk and butter before you add the shells. Otherwise, the orange powder will gather in the shells before being mixed and just cause a big powdery headache. Or maybe it's the toddler sitting in his chair screaming, "Macky Cheese! Macky Cheese!" that causes the headache. Best to maximize your chances of getting through this meal headache-free and 1. not tell your toddler you're making macky cheese until it's completely done and cooled off and 2. mix the powder and milk first. Let my headache be your salvation.