shortly before bed, around 9pm, i like to eat a bowl of Corn Flakes while standing up in the kitchen. the boxed milk is full fat and too sweet, so i use it sparingly. the Flakes stay crunchy longer that way too. we only have a few bowls in the house and most often have to use small deep plates. the spoons are all tiny, more suited for measuring sugar into your cup of tea than transporting mouthfuls of cereal or yogurt.

i also like using the sandwich toaster to make cheese toasties late at night. butter or margarine on the outside of the bread cooks to a brown crisp while Gouda cheese and tomatoes melt together inside. ground black pepper tops it off and makes me want a big glass of milk when i’m done. but the full fat tastes like drinking cream, so i opt for water instead.

i have introduced the girls from Scotland to cinnamon toast. i think they looked at me a little crazy the first day i sprinkled brown sugar and the dark brown spice over melting margarine on my bread fresh from the toaster. now they are hooked. they have it before bed and first thing in the morning. Ivy has had to buy more cinnamon for us.

sometimes at lunch (especially if the egg salad has far too much mayo or the pasta salad is dripping with oil) i have a bowl of plain yogurt with sliced kiwi. i hope not to offend Ivy by passing up her cooking, but her heavy hand with the butter and oil has been hard on my stomach. in the evenings, i sometimes will skip dinner and have a cheese toastie after Ivy has gone home for the night.

i like the Ginger Nuts cookies from the grocery store. they don’t have nuts in them, so i’m a little confused at the name. we call them ginger snaps back home. they are good dunked in tea or milk (yes, even full fat) and their dense texture travels well in the bottom of my backpack. sweet and spicy.

i have stopped drinking coffee! the bag of favourite grounds that i brought from home has been sitting in the freezer untouched for weeks. instead i have a cup of Red Rose in the morning and another around 4pm. i experimented with sugar and cream for a little while, but found i prefer it black like my coffee. i didn’t think i missed coffee very much, but as i type this i realize i am looking forward to a good brew at home.

some of the girls are making lists in their heads of things they want to eat when they get home. comfort foods they miss. favourite dishes that just aren’t the same out here. one of the girls has instructed her mother to cook a big roast dinner for her arrival. she misses the gravy and mash. for some reason i miss Pop Tarts. i rarely eat them at home, but would love a raspberry or strawberry one with burn-the-roof-of-your-mouth icing on top.

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