Circus Peanuts!!!!

People either love them or hate them.  I for one love them!   Not sure why.  They taste kind of funny (my research indicated that they are banana flavored – go figure!), the texture is downright strange, but all the same, just the name conjures up great memories and happy feelings!

The name alone sparks excitement – who doesn’t love a circus? But for me it is pure and simple a summer time candy.  Summer tends to bring big families together.  As kid growing up in the suburbs when school let out for the summer you lost touch with your school friends, and were forced to hang with your siblings.  As one of seven kids we were never without a playmate.  This was especially true when we would go to the lake.  Suddenly we were all best friends.  We would spend hours together, whether swimming, playing cards in the boat house, playing hide and seek at night, ganging up on our parents to take us somewhere or another, and of course going to the candy store.  As best friends, it was also a time of sharing with each other – and for my sister, Kathy, and I it was sharing a bag of Circus Peanuts together.  I’m not even sure I remember why we chose Circus Peanuts as one of staple candies, perhaps it was because of our Grandfather Curry or because the Candy Store had them, it doesn’t really matter.  They simply are one of those nostalgic candies from my past and as such makes me incredibly happy! So I love Circus Peanuts for the memory of my childhood, for spending time with my brothers and sisters and enjoying our time together.

Fast forward to the present day – our dad passed away a month ago. Something so sad was made quite special as I watched the seven of us band together to help our mom through the funeral planning, the mass, and picking up all the pieces after someone dies.  We may not see each other every day, and several of us live out of state, but you know, we are still a family, we have a history together that we share with no one but us, memories that don’t fade because when we are together they bubble up and explode in joyful abandon around us! 

Back to Circus Peanuts for a bit – did you know that in 1963, General Mill’s vice president John Holahan stumbled upon a discovery that putting Circus Peanuts shavings in his breakfast cereal made for a tasty combination, thus invented the breakfast cereal Lucky Charms?  Did you know my Dad worked at General Mill’s?  Also, did you know that back in the 1800’s when Circus Peanuts were first on the market they were only a summertime candy (due to a lack of packaging to preserve the candy)?   Didn’t I say they were a summertime candy for me?  Coincidence?  I think not!!  No matter, they are still quite simply one of my favorite candies (I bought two bags as research in writing this post – the first bag I ended up sharing with others, but the second bag, well let’s just say I kept it well hidden so no sharing was involved!).

Go buy yourself a bag today.  I challenge you not to love these sweet, silly, orange colored, banana-flavored, peanut-shaped treats!!