Sunday Grilling and a Monday Lunch Break

"I'm a man. Men cook outside. Women make the three-bean salad. That outdoor grilling is a manly pursuit has long been beyond question. If this wasn't firmly understood, you'd never get grown men to put on those aprons with pictures of dancing wienies and things on the front and messages like 'Come 'n' Get It'"

William Geist, New York Times Magazine

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Chris broke out the charcoal grill/smoker last night. We had some chicken and the weather was beautiful so we decided to grill the old fashioned way--by making a fire without gas. I KNOW, SHOCKING!

What is it about men and grilling that makes them so happy?

Ok, even though he looks like he is choking to death on the smoke, Chris is actually ridiculously happy here. (I'll mention, for those of you who don't know, that we have a state of the art, built in barbecue/gas grill/fridge/bar area to the right of the above picture. But it is this little red smoker that makes Chris TRULY happy.)


Here is the whole thing in action. Looks hot, eh? He used hickory chips and mesquite (from our own tree that Chris has kept dry since trimming last year). The aroma was just amazing.


Awwwwwwwww . . . . so cute! James wanted to be with his Da da SO BAD! He kept smacking his hands on the slider and saying "Hot! Hot!" BTW, can you see the huge and frightening 5 alarm fire call the fire department the house is going to burn to the ground lovely plume of smoke?


To the BBQ chicken I added our favorite grilled (on the safe grill) russet potato chips and Giada's Spinach Salad with orange vinaigrette. Plus, a lovely, tall glass of Fresh & Easy Black Ice Tea. What a perfect almost summer meal!

After dinner, Chris and I watched the fire die down, enjoyed the birds and the smell of fresh cut grass and played with James. It was just wonderful.

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Ok, this could be a completely SEPARATE post, but I am folding it into this one so that I am not accused of being a manic daily blogger by my oh so competitively posting SIL thought to have nothing better to do than blog to my heart's content.

I had two things to accomplish today during lunch. Mop the kitchen floor and feed James. I had a ton of Institute work beginning with a 6am conference call (which of course means I am at my desk at 5am so that by the time the call comes I don't sound like a blithering idiot) and so I knew it was going to be a long day.

I was very fortunate to have the maid come by and do the mopping:


I will call the housekeeping service because he missed a few spots, but all he wanted in return was lunch, so how could I complain?


And here he is eating his lunch. TAKE NOTE all of you readers who know that I have been struggling to get him to eat anything that is not white/tan in color. Here he is, eating Pizza Rolls!

(Mom, don't ask. Yes, they are frozen. Yes, they could be considered junk food. Yes. I might as well shove a Big Mac down his throat. But I don't have time to make a gourmet meal for him and get my work done.)

And here is a video of my beautiful son saying "Thank you."

How is it possible that every day with him can just get better and better? I mean, as a newborn he was cute and cuddly and miraculous, and then he got even more adorable when he started to walk and follow me around, and now he says "Thank you???" I know what it means when people say that their "hearts melt."

I am such a pushover for my son.