Six is a big deal!

I didn't blog on Pookie's birthday this past week because I was just too busy (crazy, right?), so today I'm rectifying that.  Here is last year's post, if you're interested in seeing the differences.

My Pookie...

• believes that six is a big deal birthday because that's when you go from being a little kid to being a big kid. 
• Still tells me he's empty of my loving in the  morning and periodically throughout the day, especially if he's lonely or upset.  It's his way of getting a little snuggle time.
• is still terrified of dogs, but has gotten past the fear of wind, for the most part. 
• loves to help The Boy make cookies; that's just one of the many things they enjoy doing together.
• continues to sleep with Stuffy and Big Abner, a stuffed bunny and Lego man flashlight, respectively.
• would wear pajamas all the time if we'd let him!
• is starting to read some simple words and is very interested in learning more.
• got his own library card a year ago, but only recently got over his shyness enough to use it on his own.  Before that, he'd just ask me to put his books on my card and then he'd hide behind me while I checked out.  Now he smiles and talks to the librarians!
• finally figured out that "all right" and "all white" aren't actually the same thing.
• he doesn't particularly like to play in the snow, but he loves throwing snowballs at people, especially The Boy and Scooter!
• doesn't crawl into our bed nearly as much as he did even a year ago.
• asks me every night what we're having for breakfast the next day and on Saturday night he gets super excited for the next morning's pancakes!
• plays almost exclusively with Legos and Matchbox cars.
• just got on his bike and rode one day not long ago; without training wheels or help from anyone, he just figured it out and hasn't slowed down since!
• loves to play with dough and continues to ask me for a little ball of it each time I make bread.

Happy birthday to my sweet little angel face baby!!

My perspective changed

I considered putting a warning here to let you know that this post might offend some people or

 gross people out or otherwise just be off-putting, but then I realized that was silly. 

Those things apply to every post, conversation or exchange of thoughts and/or information. 

So instead of a "warning" I'll simply leave it at this: 

 As always, if you find that what I've written isn't your cup of tea, feel free to go read something else.

One thing I absolutely hate is throwing things away.  If you've seen my house, I'm sure you know what I'm talking about.  I have papers from a decade ago, clothes that haven't fit anyone in years and boxes of little odds and ends that might come in handy someday. 

I'm getting better about throwing things out when they're no longer necessary or desirable, but in learning to toss things out, I've become more aware of things I throw away without a second thought.  I used to laugh at people who washed out and reused zipper top bags or refused to buy paper towels when cloth ones would work just as well. 

I don't know if it's a symptom of getting older or a matter of the constant media barrage of "green" living, but I've started to change my thinking.

One area where I've never given a second thought to "consuming" and throwing out is feminine products.  We're taught from a very young age to simply buy pads and tampons, use them up and throw them out, but have you ever stopped to really think about that? 

A March-April 2001 article in E Magazine cites waste consultant Franklin Associates’ assertion that 6.5 billion tampons and 13.5 billion sanitary pads, PLUS their packaging, ended up in landfills or sewer systems in 1998.

That's a whole lot of garbage!  And it's not just in the landfills; according to the Center for Marine Conservation just over 170,000 tampon applicators were collected along US Shorelines in 1999!

The more I thought about this, the more I realized that not only was I throwing away quite a bit, I was also spending a lot of money on products I was using for a few hours and then throwing out! 

So I started looking for alternatives.  I considered products like reusable pads, but decided that while that's a good back up and probably something I'll start using soon enough, it's not really a solution I'm willing to use exclusively.  

In the end, I decided to try a menstrual cup.  After doing quite a bit of research I decided to buy a Diva Cup (even though I hate the name) brand menstrual cup.  Diva Cups come in two sizes (for those who have had children or are above a certain age and for those who are young and haven't had kids) which makes it easy to find the best fit for your body.

I paid less than $30 for my cup nearly a year ago and I love it!  If you follow the link and read the reviews you'll see that some people love them and some people don't. 

The first time I used my cup, I hated it.  It's inserted differently than a tampon and years of doing it one way left me feeling awkward and uncoordinated when I tried to change to a new way of doing things.  But, as with so many things in life, persistence is key.  After a few tries, I did get it inserted properly and that's when I knew I wasn't going back to disposable products.

Just like a tampon, if you have it in properly, it doesn't hurt. Unlike a tampon, however, there is a little adjustment because the stem of the cup actually ends near the edge of the vagina, so you can feel it a little until you get used to it. The stem can be trimmed for a custom fit, but since that's where you grab it to pull the cup out, it needs to have a little length.

Here's a little pros and cons comparison:

Pros:

• Extremely cost effective.  I've read of people using the same cup up to 10 years, but even if you only use it for one year, that's very likely a financial savings over pads/tampons/pantyliners.
• Environmentally friendly.  The cup comes in a box and has a little booklet of instructions.  Compare that to the box, individual wrapping, applicator and actual tampon or pad and you'll see that's a huge amount of waste not being added to landfills!
• Convenience.  The cup can be practiced with when you're not actually on your cycle, making it less messy and less stressful to become comfortable with.  Also, the cup can be worn up to 12 hours unless your cycles are extremely heavy, so you don't really have to think about it most of the time. 
• Safety: Unlike tampons, the cup has no risk of Toxic Shock Syndrome, a serious and potentially fatal illness.  That means that if you know when to expect Aunt Flo you can wear the cup before she arrives, knowing that you're safe and your clothing will be protected, no matter when she decides to show up!
• Vaginal cleanliness:  A menstrual cup allows the vagina to self-clean the way nature intended.  It doesn't allow uninvited bacteria to thrive and grow and many women report having less itching, infection and other adverse reactions with a cup than with tampons.

Cons:

• Start up cost:  Compared to a $5 box of tampons, it's a bit more money to get started with a cup.  But, again, in the long run, this one really isn't a con at all. 
• Blood:  Depending on how well you deal with your own fluids, this might take some getting used to.  I don't find it to be a big deal, but I know some people have a hard time with it.
• Adjustment period:  It takes about three cycles for most women to be really comfortable with the cup.  For me, that wasn't really a big problem, but for some people it might be a detraction. 

Part of the reason I wanted to write this post is because when I was looking for information, I couldn't find a lot of it out there.  Sure, each cup manufacturer has their own site, but I rarely trust the information on a site that's trying to sell me something.  I want to know, from real people, what to expect. 

I don't know if anyone reading this will ever choose to try a cup, but whether you do or not, at least you know where you can find a little information about it.  And please, if you want more information, feel free to leave a comment or email. 

Tabled

I don't even remember why, but a few years ago we sort of stopped eating dinner at the table.  I'm sure it had something to do with the mess of schooling and not wanting to take the time to pull apart projects to put things away when we'd just want them out again the next day.  So we got into the habit of eating in the living room.  With dinner, we'd put on a movie and just eat and watch with very little talking.

Every now and again I'd say that we should eat at the table more often (we did still eat at the table once or twice a month, but as we went along it got less and less often), but the habit of eating in the living room was already established. 

A few weeks ago I asked the kids to set the table for dinner and got nothing but a chorus of moans, groans and snarky commentary.  In a fit of frustration I yelled at them that we would eat every single meal at the table from now on until they stopped grumping about it.

At first they resented having to clear and set the table three times a day.  They grumped and complained and pitched fits every chance they had, but I stood firm to my decision and within just a few days they weren't cranky about it anymore. 

It's been almost a month and the benefits have been great!  Firstly, the dining room table is easy to keep clean because it only has a couple of hours to get messy before it we have to clean it again!  Yeah, it's a pain to clean up our school stuff just to get it out again after lunch, but the kids don't seem to mind too much. 

Secondly, we're spending every mealtime together, talking and playing and sharing our thoughts.  I know we spend a lot of time together, but when we're all scattered around the house and yard it's hard to really connect.  This time together has allowed us to all slow down and really appreciate each other.  Plus, at dinner time we've started a sort of game.  Before they can get away from the table, each person has to do something fun or silly.  One day the kids each had to choose a parent to arm wrestle before they could get up from the table.  Another time they all had to make silly noises and faces.  It's a fun little game that gives us an excuse to laugh at ourselves and each other. 

Finally, portion control is much easier to maintain when we're all around the table.  Not only am I able to clearly see how much each kid is eating, but I'm also more likely to go out of my way to watch my portion sizes!

Eating together at the table has proved to be a wonderful addition to our usual routines!  I encourage each of you to sit together and share a meal with someone you love!

I picked a bad day to quit sniffing glue!

So it's been a full week since I had any Diet Pepsi.  Here's what I've learned in that time:

1 - Having a water bottle that doesn't have a Diet Pepsi label on it makes a huge difference for me.  I'd been using a liter Pepsi bottle as a water bottle, but every time I looked at that label it made me want Pepsi even more.  When I bought a reuseable water bottle, I stopped thinking about Pepsi every second of the day.

2 - Using that water bottle also helps a ton!  I find it much easier to dismiss my craving for Pepsi when I'm properly hydrated.  If I'm already wanting Pepsi and I'm physically thirsty it's almost impossible to ignore it. 

3 - Quitting something like caffeine (especially when it's at least as much an emotional addiction as physical) the day before Aunt Flo visits is really, really hard.  If I'd known the timing was going to be so inconvenient I probably would have put it off.  But then I probably wouldn't have actually quit, so maybe it's for the best. 

4 - Going to the movies and not drinking pop is difficult.  Bryant and I saw One For the Money last night and I had to sneak my water bottle in because I can't eat popcorn without a drink and there is no way I'm paying $5 for a liter of water!  It's just not going to happen. 

5 - There's not a lot I can drink without increasing my caloric intake.  We stopped at a restaurant and I had a lemonade, but then I realized that lemonade is made with a lot of sugar.  Lots of sugar means lots of calories.  Since I was drinking a calorie free drink all this time, I'm limited in what I can substitute with that won't add a bunch of sugar and calories and mean lots of extra exercise time to work off!  So I'm pretty much only drinking water at home and I'm trying to find acceptable substitutes for when I'm out and about or when I'm sick of just plain old water. 

6 - Apparently I am stronger than my addiction and more capable of giving this up than I'd previously thought.  It's still very hard and I still have to remind myself every day of the reasons I'm doing this, but each day it gets a little bit easier. 

So that's where I'm at so far.  Seven days in and going strong!

Decisions

If you know me at all, you know that I don't drink alcohol, smoke or do any drugs not suggested by my doctor.  I don't engage in dangerous, illegal or self-destructive behaviors. 

What I do, what I'm addicted to, is Diet Pepsi.  I've known for a long time that it was a little out of control, but I've always used the excuse that if it's the worst thing I do, it's not so bad.  But Bryant has been annoyed at the amount of money we spend on it and it's gotten to the point where if I drink too much, it makes me feel sick, light headed and just gross in general. 

So why keep drinking it?  Because I love to eat a chocolate and then rinse my mouth out with a swig of that carbonated deliciousness.  Because I love the feel of the bubbles in my mouth.  Because the taste goes with everything, especially junk food.  Because it's habit.

So let's break that down.  If I eat chocolate, I want to drink Pepsi.  I've actually been known to avoid chocolate and other junk if I don't have a Pepsi, because I don't like the feel and flavor of water with junk food.  I realize that's not normal.  I also realize that for me, Diet Pepsi and junk food go hand in hand.  Either one would be easier to give up if I gave up the other at the same time. 

I love the feel of bubbles in my mouth.  I don't know that there's much to be done about this one.  I do love that feeling, and I don't think I can get it anywhere else (besides other forms of carbonated beverage, which would really not help my problem).  The only other option I can think of is carbonated water - a possibility I'm willing to consider.

The taste goes with everything.  It does.  It's as simple as that.  There are very few foods that just don't go with it, in my opinion.  And maybe that's because I've been drinking it with everything for 15 years.  Sometimes I get up and have a glass or bottle with breakfast, sometimes I'm drinking it up until a few minutes before I get into bed at night.  Sometimes I nurse a bottle pretty much all day.

The habit.  That's the biggest one for me.  If I have a headache, I reach for a Pepsi.  If I'm tired, a Pepsi.  If I'm lonely, sad, happy, bored or motivated....

Pepsi!

Pepsi!

Pepsi!

PEPSI!

PEPSI!

PEPSI!!

When we got to a store, for any reason, I buy at least a 20 oz, sometimes a 2 liter, sometimes both.  We got to a restaurant and I drink Diet Pepsi (Diet Coke is an acceptable substitute if Pepsi is unavailable, though I'd much prefer Pepsi).  We take a trip and I have at least one bottle in the car with me, then buy more when we reach our destination.  It has become my habit to have a Pepsi bottle in my hand, on the table next to me or in my cupholder. 

It has become a point of contention between Bryant and myself on more than one occasion.  He doesn't try to stop me from buying it, but he recognized a long time ago that I was out of control.  I've scrounged change out of the couch cushions to buy Pepsi when money has been tight.  I leave a little buffer in the grocery budget so I won't feel bad about spending a few dollars on Pepsi.  I've asked Bryant to go out of his way to get it for me, even when he wasn't feeling well or the weather was bad. 

Somehow, with all of that, I'd still convinced myself that it really wasn't a big deal.  Until recently.  A few weeks ago, Bryant half joking asked me, "Do you have any idea how much money we spend on Pepsi?"  Obviously I didn't, but I was sure it couldn't be as bad as all that.  I was sure he was just overreacting and it wasn't really a big deal. 

Determined to show him that it really wasn't such a huge amount, I started a tracker on the back of one of my notebooks.  I made a section for 2 liters, 1 liters, 20 oz bottles and Sam's cups.  I decided not to track glasses at restaurants as those would come with the meal.  I made a hash mark in the proper column each time we bought one. 

After a week, I found myself adding hash marks and studiously avoiding looking at how many hash marks there already were.  After two weeks, I actually considered "forgetting" to log a few because it was clearly getting to be a lot more hash marks than I'd expected. 

This morning marks three weeks of tracking.  I promised myself that would track for a month, but this morning as I was adding yet another hash mark, I decided it was a good time to just do a little progress check. 

Wow. 

I was shocked at the numbers.  I debated whether or not to post them, but I figure if you're still reading this, maybe you want to know.  Or maybe I should just put it out there anyway, because it's good for me to be completely honest about just how serious this problem is. 

2 liters - 9 = 608.4 oz
1 liters - 4 = 85.2 oz
20 oz - 4 = 80 oz
Sam's glasses - 1 = 32 oz

That's a total of 805.6 oz in three weeks, not counting any Pepsi I've had at restaurants (which has been a few glasses).  That breaks down to 38.36 oz per day.  Yikes!  If we use that information to answer Bryant's original question...  Well, that's an ever bigger yikes!

Using general prices (as these were not all purchased from the same store so prices may vary a bit), that equals out to just about $30 in three weeks.  That's about $10 a week or over $500 a year! 

$500 a year?!?  That's insane.  I'm paying hundreds of dollars a year to pour poison into my body! 

And, if you consider one of the points above was that I like to have Pepsi and junk food together, it gets even worse.  I haven't tracked any junk, but just from memory I know that I've bought bags of chips, bags of candy, cookies and other junk.  Sometimes it's just a tiny bag (snack size bag of Combos or cookies), sometimes it's a full size bag of Doritos. 

I'm not quite ready to give up junk food, but as of this moment, I'm done with Pepsi.  I've poured out the glass I was drinking and told Bryant that he could drink what was left in the bottle or I was going to pour it out, too. 





Everything before this was written yesterday.  I just reread it and I still feel the same way.  It's been almost 24 hours since I had any Pepsi and I'm starting to feel the loss.  Bryant and I made a quick trip to the grocery store a bit ago and it was really hard for me to walk out without any Pepsi.  But I did it!

I feel like I should have some poignant, clever thing to end with, but my head is aching and I don't have anything witty, touching or particularly special to say, so I'll end with this:

Be good to your body and to each other.

If I Were A Banned Book

Presented without commentary...


If I Were A Banned Book
Nov. 30, 2011
By William Henderson




If I were a banned book, I’d be the dirty bits and the heaving breasts and the twisted sheets and the scented oils and the chains and rope and dripping candle wax. I would coax you into multiples, and I would urge you to invite another. I’d be the empty bottle of gin on the kitchen table. I’d promise to call, but never would.

If I were a banned book, I’d tell you to challenge authority and question everything and demand answers. I’d tell you that the 1 percent is nothing without the rest of us labeling the 1 percent the 1 percent. I’d teach you to cook anarchy and embrace diversity and kiss your same-gender lover in public.

If I were a banned book, I’d let you ask me about sex and growing up, and I’d sing the caged-bird songs, and I’d be each of the nobodies who would answer to the name nobody. I’d teach you to sail a raft and swim against tides and dance in towns where dances aren’t danced.

If I were a banned book, I’d be the light on long-past midnight in your attic, and I’d be the cauldron around which dance witches and in which fire burns and toil and trouble doubles.

If I were a banned book, I’d bring flowers to the grave of a mouse and I’d teach you that forever sometimes means forever and sometimes means less than forever but always means what forever will mean to you, then, at that moment.

If I were a banned book, I’d be the secrets you write in your diary and I’d be the lies you write in your diary and I’d be the truths that you wish weren’t truths that you write in your diary.

If I were a banned book, I’d be cupboards and wardrobes and the hidden door under a stairwell in which lives the boy who lived. I’d be beanstalks and magic shoes and godmothers, winged and otherwise. I’d be potion poultice poetry. I’d be words wings wizardry.

If I were a banned book, I’d dance with insects outside of an enormous peach, and I’d race wolves in woods overgrown with ivy and snow. I’d be the substitute teacher who’d let you smoke cigarettes outside. I’d be the comic book hidden behind your history book.

If I were a banned book, I’d urge you to go ask Alice, and wrinkle time, and ride in talking cars. Everyday, I’d crown a new king fly-lord, and everyday would be a good day to say goodbye to something.

If I were a banned book, I’d be the Pigman and I’d be a Wallflower and I’d be the story of Sleeping Beauty, written under a penname. I’d kill mockingbirds and I’d talk about the things we talk about when we talk about things like death and love and sex and forever, which, as I already would have taught you, sometimes means less than forever but always mean what forever will mean to you, then, at that moment.

Creamy Hot Cocoa

For quite a few years, we would say that we wanted to do this and that Christmas activity or craft, but then the season would get away from us and then it was spring again.  A lot of things got left undone.

This year I printed calendars for November and December.  I started by filling in the special days, like holidays and birthdays.  Then I added in things like grocery shopping, orthodontist appointments, etc...  When that was finished, I gathered the kids and we brainstormed ideas to fill the Christmas part of the calendar. 

Pibb's birthday is early in December and we don't begin decorating or celebrating Christmas until afterward.  We want to keep his birthday special and separate from the rest of the holiday rush. 

So we had about two weeks of Christmas activities to come up with and I think we did admirably!  We planned things like making paper chain garlands, folded paper snowflakes and Lego ornaments.  We also planned visits to the Festival of Trains (a local model railroad group sets up huge, interactive displays) and a hot cocoa tasting week with a different homemade cocoa each day! 

This week is Hot Cocoa Tasting Week and yesterday was our first attempt at homemade cocoa.  It was a huge success!  Everyone liked it, the mix was crazy simple and it made a large batch (about 25 servings) for not a large amount of cash.  If you've got a few minutes, I recommend you throw this together immediately!

Creamy Hot Cocoa Mix

4 C nonfat dry milk
1 1/2 C sugar
1 C non-dairy creamer
2/3 C cocoa powder
4 oz instant chocolate fudge pudding

Mix all together in a large bowl or jar, stirring well to combine.

Add approximately 1/4 C mix to 8 oz boiling water and stir. 

That's it.  Seriously. 

I did find that I had to buy name brand pudding, since I couldn't find a chocolate fudge version in my local store brand, but at a whopping $ .79, I think I can handle the cost.  Especially since that one ingredient seemed to take this from okay cocoa to really good cocoa! 

Today's treat is Mocha Cocoa and if it goes well, I'll post that recipe tomorrow. 

And then there were five...

I totally slacked.  I admit it.  Last week Friday was Pibb's birthday and I completely forgot to blog him.  My apologies.

10  years ago, that little boy came into this world spinning like a bullet (not an exaggeration) and he's barely slowed down since. 

In between Scooter's birth and my becoming pregnant with Pibb we suffered two devastating miscarriages.  I'd undergone a barrage of tests to help determine the cause and when we found out I was pregnant again my midwife was there, ready to help our baby have the best chance he possibly could.  After a very scary pregnancy and more than a few panic attacks, we welcomed him into the world with tears streaming down our faces.

He's growing up to be quite amazing!  He:

• is a little bit of a perfectionist, but only when it suits him to be.
• loves food and would eat all day if we let him.
• Has a stuffed monkey named Bobo.  We were shopping one day when he was a little under two years old and he saw Bobo on the shelf; it was love at first sight!  Bobo is missing his nose thanks to an overly rambunctious puppy, but Pibb still sleeps with him every night. 
• likes to take apart small appliances and, on more than one occasion, has had to be stopped from taking apart something we actually still use.
• is into Legos in a big way.  Some days we barely see him because he's so occupied with whatever he happens to be building at the moment.
• has a bit of snarky streak and isn't afraid to let a few choice remarks slip out, usually with a sly grin and gleam of mischief in his eyes.
• has a natural inclination towards math, science and other logical pursuits. 
• enjoys reading and has spent many hours curled up under a blanket at the end of the couch, just reading the days away.
• discovered a few months ago that my big old Canon is way more fun to play with than the Kodak EasyShare the kids usually use.  I've had to pry it away from him a few times.
• is working his way through the Bread Baker's Apprentice with me and is at least as interested in the science of baking as the eating of it.

Oh yeah, he's definitely amazing!  I love that kid like crazy!

Goodbye blue box!

I started cooking most of our food from scratch about 5 years ago and it's been great.  The transition from mostly convenience foods to mostly from scratch hasn't always been smooth, but what didn't work has simply proved a learning experience and has led us to something that does work.  There are still a few things I buy rather than make, but mostly I cook.  A lot. 

Over the past few years I've made at least two dozen different macaroni and cheese recipes.  I've tried baked ones, stove top versions and even a couple that were cooked in the crock pot.  I've tried ones with milk, evaporated milk and heavy cream.  I've tried various kinds of cheeses and different spices and seasonings, to no avail.  I simply couldn't come up with one that the kids would accept.

So when I discovered foodgawker.com, the first thing I searched for was macaroni and cheese.  Of the 163 results that came up, only a few looked like something I'd really want to make.  I'm not looking for a gourmet recipe, I don't want to buy specialty cheeses and use exotic spices.  I'm looking for a simple, delicious comfort food type recipe. 

Today, I think I've found that recipe.  Here is the recipe I used, called Stove Top Macaroni & Cheese.  I had never made a recipe on the stove top that called for egg before, so I was curious to see how it would go.  The only thing I did differently than the recipe is that I left out the hot sauce. 

I think I overthickened the sauce just a bit, because the finished macaroni was a little thicker than I'd like and didn't have a much of a saucy texture.  But that was my only issue and it's one that's easily fixed, just by cooking it a little less next time. 

The kids liked it pretty well, too!  So today I'm saying goodbye to the blue boxes and hello to yet another thing I can make from scratch!

Bagel Love

Yesterday Pibb and I started our third BBA Challenge project - bagels.  I've been making bagels for a few years now, and they've been good.  But not great.  So when I realized that Peter Reinhart had a bagel recipe in this book, I was ready to jump at the chance to try it. 

Opposite of the other recipes we've tried so far, this one has a large time commitment on the first day and a very small one the second day.  So yesterday we made the sponge, which involves letting a mix of yeast, flour and water sit at room temperature until it's foamy and risen, about 2 hours.  Our house is cold, so I set the bowl next to the stove, where I was also rising Kaiser rolls.  After the sponge was done, we added the rest of the yeast, flour and other ingredients to make a very stiff dough. 

The book said to knead the dough for 10 minutes, but I actually kneaded about 12 as I wasn't satisfied with the dough at 10 minutes.  After the dough was ready we split it into 12 equal portions and let it rest for about half an hour.  Then the fun part - shaping! 

If you've ever played with playdough, you are already very nearly a bagel shaping expert and we've spent many hours rolling, shaping and sculpting with play dough, so the shaping was pretty simple.  We rolled the dough balls into long snakes, wrapped them around our hands and just worked the ends in.  Then it was into the fridge to retard (or a very long, slow rise) overnight. 

All we did today was boil and bake the bagels - less than 15 minutes of hands on work.  The bagels don't need to come out of the fridge until you're ready to boil them, so you could have them boiled, baked and ready to eat in less than 30 minutes, if you want to eat them super hot!  We let them rest about 20 minutes before we ate them today and it was the perfect.

 The book suggests that the formed bagels can sit in the fridge up to 48 hours before being boiled and baked, so these would be great for busy weekends, holidays or brunch with guests. 

Here's how this recipe differed from my typical bagel recipe: The ones I normally make are start to finish, two and a half hours, tops. That means that the dough is a little tougher and the shape is lumpier than a typical bakery bagel. With this recipe, the overnight rest in the fridge gave the dough time to even out and relax, making these bagels very smooth and "professional" looking. My typical recipe also wants the bagels to be flipped over halfway through baking, leaving them flat on both the top and bottom. These are baked at a much higher temperature, for a shorter time and don't get flipped. Again, that leads to a more professional appearance.

These are the bagels I normally make - good, but not amazing.



Peter Reinhart's Bread Baker's Apprentice bagels - AMAZING!

The color in this picture is a little washed out, the bagels were more toasty golden in color.  Pibb ate the first bite and I could tell just from the sound of the crust as he bit into it that these were going to be way better than the others.  Bryant took the next bite and it was immediately clear that the other bagels were not going to be gracing out table again anytime soon, if ever. 

As you can see in the picture, half the bagels were left plain and the other half were given a sprinkle of homemade "everything" blend.  The blend was a little salty, but otherwise, crazy good! 

All in all, I'd call this one a huge success!