Toasting Marshmallows

I had half a packet of marshmallows left over from Christmas baking activities. I had been giving these to the kids as treats on and off until there were only 4 left before the thought hit me, "Why, I do have a fire at home!"

So one afternoon, I got out 3 skewers and poked a marshmallow through each. I got the kids over, turned on the stove, and started roasting one. The marshmallow was surprisingly easy to get burnt, as I found out after the first one, so that was devoured by me. I learned to hold the two other marshmallows higher up and toast them to a light speckled brown before handing them to Jethro and Heidi. Ethan had a go on his own.

The look on their face ('crispy on the outside and soft inside' was Professor Jethro's pronouncements to his siblings) - flushed with the happiness of the sweet, sweet taste of marshmallows - that was priceless. And it really didn't take much time and effort, nor did it create much mess.

The kind of 'new knowledge' you could actually pass on to your children, triumphantly on your side and wonderfully taken on the other - that is so invaluable and scarce.

Of course I won't do it again. Toasting marshmallows over the stove? That's so sad it should only occur once. Then again, the novelty may be gone but the pleasure won't, so I suppose it's not that sad really...?