Here we go a bagelling…
On Halloween night someone in our neighborhood handed out coupon books instead of candy. I wish I knew who it was so that I could thank them profusely. The coupons are for Einstein Bagels, they come 6 to a booklet and each coupon is for a free bagel. All four kids got one, so we have 24 coupons. These coupons are ingenious from a business standpoint because they only apply to kids 12 and under. So the kid gets a free bagel and mom or dad is standing there in the store looking at yummy food and will probably buy something.
Einstein Bagels are one of the things that I miss. We used to buy them with shmears for the family fairly regularly and we all loved it. Thanks to these coupons our kids are getting to have bagels again, at least until the coupons run out. We’ve made a real treat out of going to “the bagel store.” Usually it is just one child and Howard. The child gets to hold the coupon, pick a bagel, hand over the coupon and walk out of the store with a little brown back of “yum.” They feel grown up and important doing those things themselves. Howard brings the bagel home, toasts it and sprinkles it with cinamonsugar for the child to devour. Sometimes the child isn’t very hungry and then Howard or I get to have some too. Yum.
Getting to eat yummy bagels is happy, but even happier is being able to provide a small treat for the kids. The bageling ritual is far more imporant than the actual food content of the bagel.