In the book, a family of chickens keeps running out of household items. No one remembers to put it on the grocery list, so every time Mom chicken returns from her weekly shopping trip, they are always in need of something else. One day they have toothbrushes, but no toothpaste. They have pancakes, but no syrup (and improvise with ketchup!) And you really have to feel sorry for the little boy chick when he has lima beans, but no napkins to hide them in! Or when he gets stuck in the bathroom without any toilet paper!
This sounds just like our house. Anytime we run out of something, Daddio and I ask each other to remind us to either put it on the list, or pick it up at the store the next time we go. Well, no one EVER remembers to write it on the list, or if we do, there's never a pen around at that exact moment and we forget to do it later. Some weeks we have spaghetti, but no sauce. Other days we have hamburgers, but no rolls. Or I will get ready to bake cookies, but discover that we don't have any eggs! In an attempt at being a little more organized, I downloaded and printed this helpful "little" list* to have in front of me as I fill out my grocery list. Of course, this is only helpful when I can actually find where I put the list! It has been MIA now for several months, and I have yet to print out a new one.
But back to the book. One day, Mom chicken "flipped out"! They have macaroni, but no cheese, and peanut butter, but no jelly. So for dinner, she ends up making a peanut butter and pickled grub on macaroni casserole. I have to do this ALL the time! I'm constantly improvising my recipes and creatively substituting ingredients for the ones I forgot to get. Although, thankfully, I've never had to resort to a peanut butter and pickled grub on macaroni casserole. In another attempt at being more organized and less stressed when it comes time to planning dinner, I tried to plan out each meal for the week ahead of time. This also helped to ensure that I had all of the items I needed on hand. I listed everything that I would need for the week and made sure it was on the grocery list ahead of time. (Please note my use of the past tense. This lasted, maybe, 4 or 5 months).
The chicken household eventually gets more organized and everyone decides to help out Mom chicken with the grocery shopping. Sam and Owen think it's hilarious when the chickens decide not to eat any more pickled grubs and pack them up in a box to mail to Grandma. (I would imagine that pickled grubs would be our equivalent to...SPAM?) And they think it's super silly that the little boy chicken keeps putting "pony" on the grocery list, because everyone knows that you don't get ponies at a grocery store! This book has been one of their favorites this week and several times I have caught Sam "reading" it to Owen. Too cute!
*This list has been updated since I first downloaded it! I will now be printing out this version for future reference. They also have a vegetarian version of the list. I recommend that you check out both versions, if not to use, then at least to check out the humor added to each.
**UPDATE: For a funny read, check out the book below, Milk Eggs Vodka. It's written by the folks who created the Ultimate Grocery List that I shared above. It's a collection of other people's grocery lists, spelling errors and all. Amazon.com allows you to take a look at an excerpt of several pages, and it's pretty humorous. I wonder at the type of person who is buying "buttmilk", "Oreo B", and "tush cleaner". LOL.
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