Good Eats!

Breakfast at Cracker Barrel is a fun family tradition for us. We'll usually go around the holidays, or whenever there's a long weekend. Dave and the girls all love the pankcakes and syrup (it comes in cute individual glass bottles) and I love to shop in the store after we eat. It's kind of a funny restaurant, but for whatever reason we love the atmosphere and it's sort of become "our" place. Here are Ashley and Nattie and I way before Emmy was even a twinkle in Dad's eye? Addie was almost done cookin' in my belly and isn't it funny the girls both sat on the same sides 3 years later in the picture above?

Ash takes a load off

Did I mention that Addison really likes the syrup at this restaurant?

She really, really, REALLY likes it! Notice the already empty bottle by her plate?..and no sign of a pancake anywhere?

I think her tongue is actually stuck in the bottle at this point.

Nowadays, in addition to polishing off her syrup (in such a lady-like fashion), she has taken a liking to the preserves and just eats it straight out of the little cup...toast is such a bother, who needs it? Emmy dined on bisquits and passed on the gravy(smart girl). You gotta love southern cookin'! Natalie, our resident shrimp eater/inhaler noticed the "fried shrimp" on the kids lunch menu last time we were there for breakfast. She asked if she could order it for breakfast (gag) and the waitress was happy to oblige. It took Nat about 5 minutes to polish off her breakfast of champions and then she asked if she could have more. What a nut.

My step-dad is a manager at Market Street and got stuck working a crappy holiday shift a couple weeks ago. He called to say I could have some free lobsters if I came in right then. It took me about 30 seconds to get in the car. I've only ever had a whole lobster like 2 other times in my life and it's always such a treat...but it's never been free! It even came with instructions on how to eat lobster which was funny - and informative actually. He also threw in shrimp, clam chowder, and the crusty bread I love. The girls were all freaked out by the lobster and it didn't help that we pretended we were going to get their fingers with the claws. They opted to eat food that didn't bite you back. We didn't care because it was more for us. We ate like kings that night and I hope my step-dad is disgruntled more often.
I don't buy sugared cereals all the time. The girls love Lucky Charms and so on occassion I will buy it if it's on sale. Dave came across the mega-size Lucky Charms at Sam's Club and you would have thought it was Christmas around here. I think the girls had LC for breakfast and snacks for like 5 days straight, then the obsession stopped just as quick. I happened to look in the box one day and there was 3/4 of a bag left...and every single charm was gone. Buttheads. That is why they don't get LC very often.
This is what I woke up to Sunday morning. In a bizarre turn of events, Ashley and Emmy slept in, and the two trouble-makers decided to have a "breakfast picnic" complete with frozen waffles and spray butter. Natalie tried to toast the waffles, but they were still semi-frozen. Addie had already sprayed hers with butter and I think they were both just going to eat them like that. Nasty...but far nastier than that is sweet little Emmy, with truly unfortunate hair in this pic, gnawing on a cube of butter I set out for the butter dish. She grabbed it and went to town. She is truly grandma's girl at heart...next thing you know she'll be asking for drizzled butter on her cheerios. :) We love you Grandma Janet!!..and the kids and Dave still prefer the way you butter toast vs. my way so there you go.

I guess that's what I get for ditching the high chair for a counter-top version. It's convenient, but Emmy has been the worst at grabbing anything she can get her grubby paws on!