Cosmically Comical

      "Mom? Dad? Um, you know how I said we were going to the Lake District for a field trip?

Well...we are actually hurtling through space a zillion miles away from Earth. Please don't be  mad."                                                                                              

       12-year-old Liam Digby is extremely tall for his age. He spends the majority of his middle school years being mistaken as an adult and soon realizes that being tall has its perks. He can ride roller coasters when the rest of his class cannot. He can pose as a teacher and drink coffee in the teachers' lounge. He can even test drive a Porsche! Well, he can almost test drive a Porsche. He and his friend Florida, a celebrity-obsessed fashion junkie (love her!),  break away from their weekly drama class and peruse the shopping mall posing as a father-daughter duo. Liam, a World of Warcraft addict, believes that he is gaining "skills" to prepare him for the next Level. The action really starts heating up when Liam enters a contest to visit the World's Most Awesome Theme Park. The only catch is that the contest is for dads and kids. Guess who enters it as a father and daughter pair and wins? You betcha: Liam and Florida. What ensues is a Dahl-like competition that tests the bravery, intelligence, and most of all "dadliness" of our hilarious main character.

As Liam would say, it is "absolutely cosmic!"

Recipe to Read By: Out of This World Moon Pies

Moon pies traditionally combine marshmallows, cookies, and chocolate, but you can always add a smear of peanut butter or Nutella for a cosmic flavor combination.

Ingredients:

1 box Devil's food cake mix
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup Marshmallow Fluff

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (200 degrees C). Spray two cookie sheets.
2. To Make Chocolate Cookies: Mix together cake mix and baking powder. Stir in eggs and oil.
3. Drop the dough onto cookie sheet by rounded tablespoonfuls. Leave at least 3 inches in between each one; dough will spread as it bakes.

4. Bake in preheated oven for about 11 minutes. Allow to cool at least 30 minutes before filling.

5. To Make Cosmic Marshmallow Filling: In a medium mixing bowl, blend together 1/2 cup butter or margarine, confectioners' sugar, flavored extract, and Marshmallow Fluff. Mix until smooth. Stick your finger in and bask in the glory that is Marshmallow Fluff Filling.

Assemble pies by spreading 1 to 2 tablespoonfuls of filling on flat side of a cookie crust, then covering filling with flat side of another cookie crust.



 

The London Eye Mystery

I grabbed this book for two reasons: 1.) I love a good mystery. 2.) I love people with British accents. With high expectations for a good mystery involving funky British sayings, this book did not disappoint.

Ted and Kat live a relatively normal life in London with their parents. I say "relatively" because Ted lives with a brain syndrome that makes him think differently than everyone else.

However, when Aunt Gloria and her son, Salim, come to visit Ted and Kat their lives becomes much less normal and much more interesting.

Upon their arrival, Salim declares that he would like to visit the London Eye, a ginormous Ferris-wheel type ride that allows for amazing views of the city. While their mothers wait for them to buy tickets, a man approaches the three children and offers them his ticket for free. He explains that he is claustrophobic (afraid of small spaces) and can't bring himself to ride. The children happily accept the ticket and give it to Salim, who excitedly walks onto the next pod. Kat and Ted watch Salim get onto the ride and follow his pod all the way around, with Ted timing his descent to the exact minute. When Salim's pod finally reaches the ground they watch all of the other people file out, keeping a close eye out for Salim. Minutes pass, and as the pod empties they realize that Salim is not there.

They wait patiently as the other pods empty, but still no sign of Salim. What happened to him? He couldn't have just disappeared!

So begins Kat and Ted's impressive attempts to piece together all of clues left behind and solve the mystery of Salim's disappearance. Sounds cool, huh?

Go on, you know you love a good mystery, too! You super sleuths out there may even solve it before Ted and Kat do...

"I want to ride on the Eye, mummy!"

Here is a list of some of my favorite British words. Can you guess what they mean? Keep scrolling down to see if you were correct.

Fun British Words
1. Banger
2. Bloke
3. Bobby
4. Rubbish
5. Gobsmacked
6. Higgledy-piggledy
7. Ice lolly
8. Jumper
9. Loo/Water closet
10. Nappy
11. Numpty
12. Telly
13. Trainers
14. Post
15. Queue
16. Biscuit
17. Tube

Recipe to Read By: Digestive Biscuits

Fancy a biscuit? Despite their weird names, these cookies are very popular in Britain and resemble a crumbly graham cracker. After baking a batch of these simple, yet tasty treats,

practice your British persona by raising a pinkie, dunking a biscuit in some tea, and asking in your most elegant and regal voice, "Pardon me, but could you direct me to the loo?"

Ingredients:
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon rolled oats
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons brown sugar
4 tablespoons milk

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder. Mix in the oatmeal. Cream together the butter and the sugar and add to mixture. Stir in the milk until mixture forms a thick paste.
3. Knead dough on a floured surface until smooth. Roll out dough to approximately 1/8" thickness. Cut into rounds with cookie cutter about 2 1/2 inches in diameter. Transfer to cookie sheets and prick with a fork.
4. Bake 15 to 18 minutes, or until golden. Let cool on wire rack. Store in an airtight tin.

5. In your best British accent, walk around asking people if they "fancy a biscuit."

Recipe courtesy of http://www.allrecipes.com/

American Equivalents to Fun British Words

1. Banger=Sausage 2. Bloke=Man 3. Bobby=policeman 4. Rubbish=garbage 5. Gobsmacked=utterly astounded 6. Higgledy-piggledy=in disarray 7. Ice lolly= popsicle 8. Jumper=sweater 9. Loo/Water closet= bathroom 10. Nappy=diaper 11. Numpty=stupid person 12. Telly=TV 13. Trainers=sneakers 14. Post=mail 15. Queue=a line you wait in

16. Biscuit=cookie 17. Tube=subway