Prince Charming is out-of-town. He’s in a god-forsaken desert at some kind of meeting. (Not this desert.) The girls in this house are not happy when Prince Charming leaves–none of them. But he rarely travels now, and it was only two days and one night, so we are surviving.

To make the best of it, I never do any real cooking, and we sometimes watch a movie later than regular bedtime.

But since it is summer, I decided to go all-out and make it a Girls’ Night. (Unfortunately we have an early and long day today, but it was fun last night!)

First, Chic made cookies while Chicklet was taking a nap yesterday.

Chic using the mixer to make chocolate chip cookies.

Chic using the mixer to make chocolate chip cookies.

This is Chic’s first real attempt at cookies without constant supervision. I helped get things she couldn’t reach since I was there, but she did most of it herself. I was so proud of her!

Cookies exactly the way I like them.

Cookies exactly the way I like them.

I have never been a master cookie chef. That is until I found a Mrs. Fields cookies cookbook. My cookies are always flawless now (at least to my taste), and I taught Chic the secrets which include not overmixing, baking longer at a lower temperature and letting them cool on the counter rather than racks.

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Next was popcorn.

I will admit that Prince Charming has made the popcorn in this house since Chicklet was on the way. (I was really sick at the time. He started doing it, and it has just been that way since.) I do not like microwave popcorn, so we use a crank popcorn maker. The one in the picture is the 4th or 5th one we have owned in the past 11 years of marriage. I LOVE popcorn, and we use it a lot.

Popcorn in this house is made in this pan; never in the microwave.

Popcorn in this house is made in this pan; never in the microwave.

I was a little nervous because I burned the popcorn the last couple of times I tried it (thus assuring that Prince Charming always does it), but he was gone. I actually thought of having him make some before he left, but he was SO busy that I did not have the heart to ask.

I am proud to say I did not burn it, and it turned out wonderfully! (Probably because I forced myself to stay away from the computer for the three minutes it was popping.)

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I thought a little plate of cheese with at least a little nutritional value might be a good idea. (Turns out that was mostly for me. I did not pick the favorite cheeses of young girls.)

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We settled in to watch a move–a long one.

Just the view of this makes me excited!

Just the view of this makes me excited!

Yes, Anne of Green Gables. I am a little bummed I did not get the title page. It was an afterthought to take pictures of the screen, and I missed it and was too lazy to rewind and did not want to extend the viewing time longer than necessary because of our schedule today.

I would be happier if I didn't have errands all day and we could stay home and watch the next movie!

I would be happier if I didn't have errands all day and we could stay home and watch the next movie!

The girls enjoyed their “food.”

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I am sure they each had at least four of these bowls full of popcorn.

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When I learned that Chicklet was going to be a girl, one of the first things I thought of was Girls’ Nights like this. This is complete contentment and bliss to me. (Prince Charming will watch with us, but it’s fun to just have a Girls’ Night.)

And yes, we will read the books. That is slated to start next summer. (Chic can read them any time she wants, but I will read the series to both of them then. Right now we are reading the books by Laura Ingalls Wilder.)