December 13th, 1966

Let's bake cookies, Anne had said, it'll be fun! In theory, it was a servicable idea; baking cookies for their family and the neighbors would be a practical and delicious way to spread holiday cheer. And unlike most pastries, cookies didn't require nearly as much preparation time...well, certainly less than a cake or strudel would, anyway. So he, Anne and Henry set to work with smiles on their faces. Mom had taken Mimi and Scooter to the doctor, Stanley was studying with a friend, Pop was at work and Suzie was watching Flip and Nancy. They could surprise everyone with a tasty dessert!

Tom should have put a stop to things when he realized they didn't have enough butter. We'll just use oil, Henry said. Not enough flour? Use crushed cereal. Anne suggested adding some cinnamon, Henry added too many eggs and they needed yet more cereal to firm up the mixture. And of course, none of them could resist eating the chocolate chips so there weren't enough. No problem, Anne, said, they'll put in M&Ms.

When they stole tastes of the dough and it didn't taste as good as it should, one would think they'd give up. But Henry suggested they give it a try anyway, and no one ever doubted Henry.

Ten minutes later, they stood in a mess of spilled ingredients before a tray of blobs that resembled cookies, but they clearly weren't. They looked more like piles of loose sand with pebbles in them.

"Well, this certainly was a spectacular failure," Tom muttered.

"Yeah, and we goofed up big time," Anne snorted. "Mom's gonna be home any minute with Scooter and Mimi, how are we gonna get the whole kitchen clean and air out the smell?" Henry sighed, wiping his hands off on a towel.

"You two go take a bath and put on clean clothes. I'll...deal with this."

"Absolutely not! We two are just as guilty of creating havoc as you are," Tom said, refusing to even consider letting his admired older brother clean up his messes. Even if it was partially his. "Anne and I will get to work right away."

"Woah!" The trio turned their heads in the direction of the sound, Alan stood in the doorway surveying the chaos with a shocked grin on his face. "What happened, did a tornado come through here?"

"We were trying to make cookies," Anne said testily. "And if they'd turned out right we'd let you have two just to keep quiet!"

"Hey, what do you take me for? I'm not gonna squeal," Alan said. "But how're you gonna get this all cleaned up-"

"We were getting to that," Henry said irritably, scraping the mess into the trash can frantically. "Look, just...keep an eye out for Mom, okay? If she gets home, distract her."

"I'll do you one better." Alan smiled, picking up a mop and a sponge. "I'll help you out!"

"Me too." Suzie waltzed into the kitchen. "Nancy and Flip went down for their naps, so I'm free. And before you ask, I heard Anne shouting and Tom tripping over things. I had a feeling nothing good could come from it." She shook her head. "And Henry, what made you think it was a good idea to help them? You're hopeless in the kitchen!" Henry gave her a Look, pausing in his frantic scrubbing.

"Well...someone had to supervise! They're only eight, Suzie! Besides, I'm not that bad...I can make toast!"

"You can burn toast, you mean," Alan snorted. "Come on, let's get to work. The more we stand here arguing the less time we have to clean before Mom gets back." That effectively silenced them; Alan was only nine but at times he could be the most mature member of the family. It was hard to ruffle his feathers and he was good at keeping the peace.

By the time Mom returned with the two most junior members of the family, the kitchen was sparkling clean and there was no evidence of the failed attempt at cookies. The next day, Mom set aside the whole afternoon to teach the older children the finer points of baking.

Only Suzie and Alan would actually benefit from them.