The kids joined us for a pancake brunch this afternoon. Jeanine whipped up the buttermilk batter and I was in charge of cooking and flipping, jobs I take rather seriously. Controlling the griddle temperature on a gas stove was a losing proposition and I am looking forward to the induction cooktop we will have in our new house. Despite the challenges of keeping the pan at 375F, I managed to produce some rather fine-looking pancakes. Maya heads to the UK next week with a large group of her high school friends and it was fun to hear about all that she has planned. Nicolai had just come from his girlfriend’s birthday party where he met her parents for the first time.