Pancake Day

Meet Macy and Adam. Today is Shrove Tuesday and they both wake up with the most wonderful smell in the world! Pancakes!

Why are they having pancakes today? What is Lent? Enjoy the pancake game! Hear how they all have a go! Feed Buster the dog. Join the family in a delicious pile of pancakes!

We wish it could be pancake day every day!

Download this mp3 holiday audio story now!

Pancake Day

A Tales of Time Story

Macy woke up with the most delicious smell she had ever smelt. She jumped out of bed, threw on her dressing gown, slid her cold toes into her warm fluffy rabbit-eared slippers and ran towards her brother's room.

"Adam, ADAM! Smell that."

"Mmm" said a sleepy Adam as his eyes opened. "What is that?" he said, also jumping out of bed and finding his dressing gown.

They raced each other down the stairs. The kitchen door was open and they burst through to  find  Mum making Pancakes!

"Good Morning" she said. Happy Pancake Day!" and she kissed each of them quickly on the forehead before turning back to her cooking.

"What's Pancake day" asked Adam, licking his lips in anticipation.

"It's shrove Tuesday" she replied,

"What's Shrove Tuesday?" they asked.

" Why the day before Ash Wednesday" said mum with a smile.

"What's Ash Wednesday?" They both asked, giggling.

Well, In Medieval times, people were very poor. Religion was very important to them. Everyone went to church and everyone followed Lent. Lent was the time before Easter when people were not allowed meat, eggs, milk or cheese at all for 40 days. "

"Huh! Oh I couldn't do that, not for 40 days!"

"Well you wouldn't have had much choice Macy....You wouldn't be able to buy them anywhere!"

"I'd have bought lots of eggs and milk before Lent started and I would have enjoyed it every day!"

"Well you would never have had Pancake day then, would you?"

"huh why not?"

"Well Shrove Tuesday is the day before Lent starts and is special because everyone is using up their eggs and milk. That's why we make pancakes!"

Just then, Dad walked into the kitchen and made himself a cup of tea.

"What are well all talking about in here?"

"Pancake Day!" the children said.

Oh, you mean Mardi Gras. "Huh" they both said. "What is that?" "Oh it means "Fat Tuesday" he explained. "It's called Shrove Tuesday here. There are huge parties all over the world called carnivals. People dress up in colourful costumes and walked down the main streets. Every one cheers and eats lots of delicious food, mainly pancakes! The party lasts all day , sometimes 3 days!"
"Why don't we have carnivals?" asked Adam. "It sounds fun!"

"Oh it is. But in England we have different traditions.”

"Like What?"

"Well, many years ago, back in the medieval days, there was a woman from a town called Olney. It was Shrove Tuesday, so she was making pancakes. She had lots of ingredients and a big family, so she was making lots and lots of them. She was so busy in her kitchen that she completely lost track of time and suddenly heard the church bells ringing! She would be late for the service. So she started running towards the church, but she still had her frying pan in her hand with a pancake inside!"

"hahah"

“So since then, there have been pancake races."

"But how do you have  pancake race? Pancakes can't run?"

"We’ll let's go outside and have a go" said dad.

Macy and Adam were so excited, they ran upstairs and threw on the first clothes they could find. Then they both ran back downstairs and stood near the door waiting for dad.

Macy was wearing jeans, a dress and a jumper which was inside out and back to front.

Adam was still wearing his pyjamas under his tracksuit and had odd socks on.

Dad laughed at them as he handed them each an apron and a hat.

"All the racers have to wear these”, he said, "it's tradition."

So the pair put on the aprons and hats. Dad put them on too and they all laughed. Then they all went into the garden.

The bitter February air made their breath steamy and their noses pink. But they were having too much fun to notice.

Dad gave them both a frying pan, each with a pancake sitting in it.

"Now this is what you have to do” he said.

He started running, flicking his frying pan up, so that the pancake would flip up into the air. Then, very carefully, he caught it in the frying pan again!

"Wow" called the children.

"Your turn kids," he called from the other end of the garden.

So Macy and Adam both started running. Flicking the pancake in the air was easy, but getting it to flip upside down was harder, let alone trying to catch it. Adam stuck his tongue out to concentrate harder as he sent his pancake flying high into the air. But by the time it came back down, he had run so far, that it landed behind him.

Macy decided not to throw hers too high. She tossed it just a little way, but then ran forward, her face landing straight in it!

They all laughed. Dad joined in too. He kept running round and round in circles and crying "Whoopsie Daisy" when he nearly missed it.

Amongst all the laughter and silliness, the children could hear a funny bell coming from inside the house.

"The Pancake Bell!" shouted dad as he tried to get the entire pancake out of his hair.

"What is the pancake bell?" asked Adam.

"It used to be rung at 11 o'clock in the morning, to tell all mum's it was time to prepare the pancakes. But I think your mum is just letting us know they are ready."

"What should be do with these ones?" asked Macy. “They’re full of grass and twigs and mud. We can't eat them! Mine has even got a string attached."

"In Canada, all their pancakes have things in."

"What like string?"

"Yes! String, coins, rings. They all mean something. If you find a ring in your pancake, you would be the first married. If you find a coin, you are to become rich!"

"And what about a string then?" asked Adam.

"You will marry a fisherman!" he said

"Ha ha Macy, I hope you like FISH!" Adam jeered.

Macy's face started to go red with embarrassment to she lifted her arm to throw her pancake at Adam.

"uh uh uh" scolded Dad. Don't waste them.  Don' t  you know that the first three pancakes made are sacred?"

"Sacred?" they both said, Macy putting hers back in the pan.

"Will in the Midlands they thought so, in fact, they fed the first one to their chickens to that they would have lots of eggs in the summer. Then they marked the second and third with a cross before covering with salt and leaving on the side to ward off evil!"

"Well what should we do with ours?" asked Adam "Removing the string and twigs!

"I don't know what you think, but I think Buster would like them"

"Buster will love them - he eats anything!”

So the children ran back towards the house. They remembered to take off their wellies before finding Buster sleeping in the laundry room.

"Wakey, Wakey buster! It's Pancake Day" They both sang.

Buster's tale wagged even before he opened his eyes. He saw the pancakes and gobbled them up in an instant.

"Pancakes are ready!" called mum from the next room.

The kitchen was toasty warm and the children pulled their chairs as close to the table as possible.

Mum put an enormous pile of pancakes in the middle.

"Look, the leaning tower of Pancakes!" giggled Adam.

Then Mum and dad sat down too and they enjoyed pancakes with sugar and lemon, with jam, with syrup and with heaps and heaps of fun!

The End.

©Tales of Time 2009