On Men and Meat

What is it with men and steak?  All I did was buy a few steaks on sale.  I asked Team Estrogen, (mom and sis), for advice and they voted that my steaks were fine for grilling.

Tonight, when I innocently asked my Dad to grill them while I finished the baked potatoes, there was a long silence and I think I actually heard his heart break when he looked at my shameful steak selection.

Apparently, they were sandwich steaks.  And puny enough to cook in 5 minutes.  And too unmanly to eat.

I asked him to grill them anyway; I was positive that they would taste fabulous with the right seasoning.  Naturally, the first thing my husband said when he walked through the door was, "these steaks....these steaks are so thin!  Why did you buy these?!"  And then I think he wondered why he married me.  And then he tore his clothes and sat in ashes.

And bless Dad's heart, he went into daddy-mode.  He came upstairs with 4 articles about steak from his personal food library.  Then he read them to me.  And then he showed me a diagram of a cow and where each cut of meat comes from.  To top off my education, we are apparently going to the local butcher for a final lesson.

Because no daughter of his will ever bring home a $3 steak if he has anything to say about it.

Green Acres

So, I've been living in the country for 3 months, (with foxes, bobcats, rats in the tractor, mice in the field, snakes in the pond and the random aroma of cow poo.)

We moved in with my Dad at Green Acres when my husband got a job that required him to start in 2 days in Oklahoma City. I stayed behind for a month to get the house ready to sell, drank a lot of wine after full days of single parenting and began to grieve the loss of our amazing community in Tulsa. Although I was thrilled to be with my family again, losing my kick ass group of mommy friends was bumming me hard.

So I did the rational thing with our brand new health insurance and got pregnant. You know, cause I had some free time and all.

After Christmas, Cale and I left Tulsa and then managed to stay sick for about 2 months solid. Not awesome, but wedding season was over so we were able to recoop while watching cable and crying together about missing our "old house."   You never saw a more pathetic pair.

Just like that, winter is over and now it's spring. My first trimester is complete and I am working hard to gain back the 17 pounds I lost. Cale has adjusted and decided he loves the country, (and needs a dog.) I get to see my husband doing something he loves.  My son has his Grandad...and there have been many manly adventures. And the miracle that I didn't think would happen a second time for me did, indeed, happen. I'm going to have another baby.

Happy Spring.

A Boy's First Groupie

There's a reason some boys never move on from being a "rock star." Think about it: the teen female audience is the most fiercly loyal and enthusiastic you will ever get. And most boy bands, (I'm looking at you New Kids on the Block, Hanson and Backstreet Boys...and I am still trying to get tickets for the Dallas concert), are unable to move on after such devotion. Bless their hearts. It's sad, really. Wait a minute....maybe it starts before the screaming girls. With a much more loyal and crazed female.

And yet another star has been born.....