I challenge you to...http://ping.fm/tbMAl

I challenge you to...

"...let nothing disturb you; let nothing dismay you; all things pass; God never changes. Patience attains all that it strives for. He who has God finds he lacks nothing: God alone suffices." 
 -St. Teresa of Avila

God tells us so frequently in the Bible and in the writings of the saints that we have nothing to fear, nothing to worry about, and that He is in control. 

Why is it so difficult for us to believe Him sometimes? (If you never have trouble giving all of your fears and worries to God, please call me directly and let me in on your secret! :)

Maybe part of the answer is that we often can only envision one positive way that a particular situation could work out. When things get tough, our human eyes can't begin to imagine the layers and abundance of good that God brings--or redeems--from every situation. 

I suppose that is why we have to have faith. Faith that God is in control, that He has a wonderful plan for our lives, and that He will never leave our side. 

Michael and I have some dear friends going through one of the worst--if not the worst--experience of their lives. Their baby boy was born with serious problems--several still not fully diagnosed. How can I tell them to "let nothing disturb you, let nothing dismay you..." when every day they wonder if their little son will be able to live a healthy, normal life one day? 

One thing that my experience watching this family has taught me is that every day is a gift made of many small blessings. My friends are so humbly grateful every time someone from their community brings a meal to them. They were all smiles the day their baby reached his birth weight again. They beamed when telling me about a funny face their little one had made one day. 

For me, the blessings of my days include my health and my family's health. The roof over our heads. The food I put (for tastier or for worse) on the table. The fact that Michael and I both have good jobs right now. Hearing Gabriel giggle for the first time. What a blessed life! 

I realize that God doesn't promise that bad things won't ever happen to good people--like my friends. Or like me. But it is clear from reading His words to us that He does promise that we'll never have to go through anything without Him. 

So I will continue to "cast [my] cares upon the Lord, for He cares about [me]" (1 Peter 5:7). 

* * * * * 

Be strong and of good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed; for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.
 - Joshua 1:9

Be content with what you have, for God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."  So say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid."

 - Hebrews 13:5,6

Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and has made the Lord his hope and confidence.
 - Jeremiah 17:7

I came that you may have and enjoy life and have it in abundance,

    until it overflows.
- John 10:10

Living this today:
"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." -Gal 6:9

Miss Thrifty strikes again

I accidentally blew through our grocery money this month, and in lieu of giving in and just spending more, I decided to get a flashlight and dig up some dinners from my it-just-never-seems-that-appetizing stash at the Back of the Pantry.

Tonight, I was pretty proud of myself. I managed to present a very good-looking and promising dinner to my husband.

My poor, unsuspecting husband.

When we started eating, the main course tasted just a little funny. We were both about halfway through eating when Michael got suspicious.

"Did you check the date on that box, Erin?"

I was so eager to crown myself Miss Thrifty that I went into denial and just kept eating and eating...

I hadn't checked the date. Obviously. Because when Michael checked it, our dinner was over three years out of date! Talk about lose your appetite.

Noble Michael still ate all of his supper, as I did. Judge us if you want to. :) We're newlyweds with a new baby and we're on a budget with a mission. I just hope we don't wake up with food poisoning later!

Laugh break! YouTube's 50 best videos-- my favs are "Bouncing Baby," "Charlie Bit Me" and "Dramatic Squirrel" http://tinyurl.com/ybseots :)

Field trip to the farmer's market

Gabriel slept in this morning--which means I did too! The feeling of my grateful body awaking naturally from a night of peaceful slumber (except for a 5am feeding) was amazing!

After breakfast, Gabriel and I went on a field trip to the Clear Lake Shores farmer's market. It was a blast! There was live music and plenty of delicious fruits, veggies, pies, meats, cheeses, salsas--you name it. Gabriel and I really had a good time. :) There's nothing like an adorable baby in a maya wrap for making new friends!

One of the farms at the market grows strawberries at their farm in Alvin, and they let people go out and pick their own strawberries for $1.80 per pound. My parents took us to a farm when I was little and we got to pick our own strawberries. I still remember how much fun I had!

I would love to do something like that again with Michael and Gabriel. I am sure I can round up some of my friends for a trip soon, too!

We didn't buy anything today (because I was kind of hungry and didn't want to impulse buy everything in sight!), but we're definitely headed back soon!

There's a baby dinosaur in my house! http://ping.fm/hBBxT

There's a baby dinosaur in my house

On any given day, my neighbors probably think I'm raising a baby dinosaur in here.

Gabriel seems to be going through a Drama King phase, and his high-pitched, raspy wails sound like an angry baby pterodactyl.

This baby goes from huge grins to wild tears in the blink of an eye. He'll go from sparkly-eyed and cuddly to clenched-fists-and-pointed-toes mode so quickly! He threw his pacifier across the pew at mass last Sunday, getting giggles out of the entire row of people behind us. Fr. Dominic commented at the end of mass that he was sorry that not everyone "agreed" with the homily, winking over at us and our fussy infant.

If we have the misfortune to make Gabriel unhappy, he gives two or three warning whines and then a high-pitched squeal, followed by eardrum-bursting screams and then the baby dinosaur wails. 

The other day, he simply got bored on his play mat and screamed at the top of his lungs, twice. No warning. I went over to him and tickled his nose, whereupon he just smiled up at me innocently, as if to say, "Thanks for coming over, Mom. I absolutely must have a change of scenery soon." 

Sometimes it's tough not to take his dramatic vocalizations personally! I have to work to stay clear-headed and patient in order to evaluate what Gabriel may need or be trying to tell me. Still, I know sometimes babies cry for no good reason at all, and I do keep that little nugget in the back of my head to give me some peace of mind. In the end, all I can do for my little dinosaur is feed him, bathe him, change him, play with him, put him down for naps and love him with all my heart. And he's a happy baby overall.

In fact, I could write many more paragraphs of posts about how adorable, sweet and happy he is most of the time. In the end, I imagine that I'll look back in 50 or 60 years (when I'll be the dinosaur:) and only remember how sweet a baby boy I had and how wonderful this time in my life was.

You can get free Ben & Jerry's ice cream today from noon-8pm - yum! Gabe and I just picked up Michael for an afternoon snack break :)

Parties, peas in a pod, police, and a pretty good Saturday

Whenever anything funny happens to us now, it's always a race to see whether Michael or I will blog about it first! (Check out his great account of our day at www.francophilosophy.blogspot.com).

The Franco family had quite a nice Saturday, despite the chilly, rainy weather. Among other activities, we made lengthy appearances at two parties!

I have a 7am wakeup call every morning now, which is nice because it's consistent, but not-so-nice because it's consistent even on weekends! :) Last night, Michael and I stayed over at a friend's house way too late playing Settlers of Catan. This morning, however, I still had to wake up to feed the prompt 7am alarm that is my child. 

The good news? I fed Gabriel, bathed him, and cooked Michael his favorite egg, sausage and cheese casserole cups for breakfast (soooo yummy, see recipe below! And yes, I do feel like a Saturday morning Superstar Mom :). Then, I put him down for his morning nap and went right back to bed with Michael! 

Everyone and their mother (pun intended) tells new moms to "sleep when the baby sleeps." For one of the first times in our life as parents, we actually did that. Gabriel kindly woke us up when our lovely hour-and-a-half morning nap was over. :)

Gabriel (and his parents) attended his first children's birthday party, for our two-year-old little friend Blair Ramby (check out his mom's blog). Blair had a fantastic party, complete with a kids' obstacle course/play land in the garage, an airplane cake, a huge train set, chicken nuggets shaped like Mickey Mouse, juice boxes, and plenty of ketchup. I'm sure Gabriel had a great time when he wasn't sleeping, eating, fussing or flirting with all of the cute young  moms who were there. 

Tonight, we went to a St. Patrick's Day-themed party at the house of one of Michael's old coworkers. There was a best/worst-dressed competition, so Michael and I borrowed a pea pod costume from the Perrymans for Gabriel. 

Oh. My. Gosh. He was just too cute for words...so here are some pictures. 

Click on this picture to have it open up in a larger size. Gabriel's face is really funny! Kind of a "Where am I and what am I wearing?!" face...

Gabriel ended up winning second place in the costume contest. He would have won first place, but only 49% of the people at the party had the chance to hold him before the ballots were cast :). 

On the way home from the St. Patrick's Day party, I got pulled over for speeding! Apparently, I was going 48 in a 40. I have no idea because I wasn't paying attention. I probably deserved the ticket, except he let me off the hook with a verbal warning! Maybe it was my completely surprised, tragically resigned and humbled face. Or the baby he was waking up with his police car lights blinking through the back window...In any case, I know he was doing us a favor with his "verbal warning," and I appreciated it. :) 

We often joke about Michael growing up in New Orleans, and how he's much more worldly and hardcore then I am with my sheltered (?) Baton Rouge upbringing. The funny thing about getting pulled over with Michael in the car (and no, this isn't the first time) is that he immediately gets his pokerface on. He stares straight ahead and stops making eye contact with anyone. He gets very quiet, his voice gets lower, and doesn't make any sudden movements. 

I know I'm making my husband sound like a criminal, but it's just one of those things about him. That I love. Because my street smart, city-bred husband is calm in tense situations when I'm freaking out asking all kinds of questions like, "Should we not go on vacation this year and start using cloth diapers so we can pay what's probably most likely definitely going to be this huge expensive ticket!?!?!?"

Overall, I am pretty humbled to have been pulled over for speeding with a baby in the backseat. What kind of mother am I anyway?!

* * * * 

Sausage, Egg and Cheese Casserole Cups

(Recipe from Mrs. Lauren Orillion Romero)

1 can Reduced Fat Grand's Golden Wheat Biscuits, each circle of dough cut into thirds
1 lb turkey breakfast sausage (1 roll)
8 eggs, scrambled with a fork
8oz (1 bag) shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1. Brown the sausage. 
2. Add scrambled egg and cheese. Don't cook the eggs entirely--leave them a little bit liquid-ey. 
3. Cut the biscuit dough circles into thirds and spread each third into a muffin cup. 
4. Spoon the egg/cheese/sausage mixture into each muffin cup. Usually, I get about 18-20 generously-filled muffin cups out of this recipe. 
5. Bake at 375 degrees for 12 minutes. 

These freeze great in Ziploc bags. Just heat up in the microwave for about 1 minute. Hungry men will eat three or four. I usually eat two or three for breakfast. 

Went to our first birthday party today! Gabriel slept 1/3 of the time, fussed 1/3 of the time, and flirted the rest with pretty women

Realizing that I have a mandatory 7am wakeup call. Even on weekends :( Goodbye sleeping in. For-e-ver. Which is actually spelled: Ga-br-iel

Missing Orion

I've been thinking lately about hobbies, and how I don't actually have any.

Orion. 

He was a purebred German Oldenburg gelding. Oldenburgs are only bred in a special section of Germany--interestingly enough--named Oldenburg. 

Ever since I sold my horse, Orion, when I got to college, I haven't really had a sport or hobby. I trained and competed in dressage with Orion. I trained him myself from when he was pretty much a baby. 

The annual Houston Pin Oak Charity Horse Show was on the news this morning while I was feeding Gabriel, and they had a neat segment with a trainer riding dressage on a Prix St. George Andalusian stallion. (For those of you who aren't ex dressage queens like me, Prix St. George is a very high level of dressage, and Andalusians are some of the finest horses in the world.)

The pair were so beautiful together that I cried. Like, actual tears. After five years, I still miss riding with all my heart. Well, I guess with all the parts of my heart that aren't filled up with my awesome husband, beautiful baby boy, fantastic family and friends.

That's the thing. I'm happy. I'm where God wants me to be right now. I don't need horses and dressage to make me any happier. But I miss it all the same. And I think that's OK. 

I know that we can't imagine what God has in store for us in Heaven, but I like to think all the same that maybe Jesus and I will get to go riding together sometimes. And it would be nice to teach Gabriel how to ride one day. 

Orion's registered show name when we bought him was "Al Dente."

Orion and I showing at Serenity Farms in Covington, LA. This was probably around 2002 or 2003.

One of my favorite things about riding was getting to spend so much time with Mom. Mom had a horse growing up, and so she "got" me and my love for horses. How few horse-loving young girls have a Mom as great as I do! 

Riding after school one day

I trained Orion through Introductory, Training, First and Second Level dressage. Not high by Grand Prix dressage horse standards, but for a high school student learning right along with her 1,300lb stubborn horse, it's pretty impressive :)

I think that one point of this post was to have some cathartic reminiscing of my wonderful experiences with horses growing up (I had several other horses before Orion, and started riding when I was 11). Another point of this post is that I think I need something to do--some kind of hobby or something I enjoy doing outside of spending time with my family and friends. (Some kind of regular exercise might be good... :) 

Well, I'm sure that my Future Hobby will come to me one day. In the meantime, I have plenty to keep me busy!

Working again is starting to catch up to me.Today: praying for organization, wisdom in prioritizing, and three extra hours in the day :)

Toot sweets, Settlers of Catan, and Laundry Epiphanies

Well, Michael is now slightly obsessed with a board game called "Settlers of Catan." It's a strategy game that's kind of like a cross between Risk and Monopoly. Matt Coles broke it out at Family Dinner last Thursday, and our friend Gerry then went out and bought the game before coming over for dessert and games on Friday night. The boys are hooked. Apparently, it's an addictively fun game for people who love strategy and friendly competition. It's just that I don't have the heart of a strategist and I'm not particularly competitive!

Gabriel is going through a phase where he is peeing on things a lot. Michael got peed on yesterday and I got peed on at work today during a meeting at my boss's house. How embarrassing. None of these pee accidents happened before we bought that box of Huggies, so we think that may be the problem. Too bad we still have about 80 left before we finish the box...

Speaking of Gabriel and lower-level bodily functions, Michael and I are trying to start saying "toot" instead of "fart" when referring to certain daily (often hourly) occurrences in our son's digestive workings. The main reason for this is that we don't want to scandalize the language development of our friends' impressionable little two-year-olds. Now, all we have to do is work on not laughing in front of the two-year-olds every time Gabriel lets out a good one. 

I also had an epiphany about laundry this week. So true, and so freeing! I realized that laundry will always be there. Clothes to iron, wash and/or fold. And that's OK. Because the family who doesn't have a basket of waiting laundry gracing their living room, kitchen table, bed or coffee table probably just has a great place to hide it while the rest of us aren't looking. So, if you come over to my apartment and there's no laundry in the rocking chair or on the couch, it's because our big laundry basket fits great on top of the washer behind the folding doors of our tiny laundry closet. :)

Aformentioned turkey is billowing smoke out of the oven and setting off the smoke alarm while Gabe is napping. This bird better be good.

Working, giving Gabe a bath, running laundry, cooking a turkey (no joke) and trying to figure out if I can take a nap at some point today...

I love Daddy

Already a TV bum? 

Daddy's chest is the best place for falling asleep. Especially when you get a handful of his crucifix necklace.

I <3 Daddy

Holding down the fort

Both Gabriel and Michael haven't been feeling well since last weekend, and I'm a little tired. I'm learning that the bigger they are, the harder they fall. And the littler they are, the louder (and longer, and harder, and more frequently, and more pitifully) they cry...I do feel like kind of a wimp for feeling so tired after just a few days. I guess this is what "holding down the fort" feels like. 

I need a girl day of some kind in the very, very near future. Which brings to mind the question: what would be my version of a "me" day? 

At the moment, I'm envisioning a nap on a quiet beach. As I lay on pillows in the cool sand under a fluffy white tent, icy cold margaritas, strawberry smoothies and lemonade would be on tap. Fresh chicken caesar salad for lunch would be a nice touch. As would a big, thick page-turner that doesn't make me think too hard. Cheesecake, brownies, or cookie cake--or maybe possible all three mixed together--would be pleasant as well. 

The funny thing about what I just wrote? I just described my honeymoon to a T--minus the cute new husband part. Michael and I had a fantastic honeymoon at Sandals on the island of St. Lucia. I guess Michael (as long as he's not sick) would be a nice addition to my perfect "me" day too. :)

My new friend, the HEB greeter

Gabriel and I trekked out to HEB early this morning to "make groceries" (anybody else heard of that term by the way?). On our way back out to the car, the door greeter--an elderly man who I soon learned was from Saudi Arabia--insisted he help me get my groceries into the car.

He talked so constantly and made me laugh so much that he pretty much made my morning. He talked about everything from his opinion that Houston is behind the times because they won't let him build a Saudi-style, 5-bedroom house out of concrete ("They insisted I have at least 50% wood in my house!), to his exasperation with how the grocery store always bags liquor purchases in brown paper bags ("It's from those damned Prohibition days!").

You just never know who you're going to meet in a day...

Humility starts here

This Lent, I asked God to show me what I need to work on. Boy did He decide to grant me that wish so far!

He has gently revealed more and more of my spiritual stumbling blocks at a time when most of my thoughts are tied up with my desperate desire to be an Attentive, Confident Super Mommy and Wife (a stumbling block all its own! :). One of the daily prayers in the Lenten reading hits home--hard--for me.

Pride and Vanity want so much to be praised and thanked and admired by those around us, when all that really matters is what we do in the sight of God and in the name of His kingdom.

Hope this touches someone else as much as it touches and inspires me daily.

* * * * *

Litany of Humility
Jesus, meek and humble of heart, hear me!
From the desire of being esteemed, Lord Jesus, free me!
From the desire of being loved...
From the desire of being acclaimed...
From the desire of being honored...
From the desire of being praised...
From the desire of being preferred...
From the desire of being consulted...
From the desire of being approved...
From the desire of being valued...

From the fear of being humbled, Lord Jesus, free me!
From the fear of being despised...
From the fear of being dismissed...
From the fear of being rejected...
From the fear of being defamed...
From the fear of being forgotten...
From the fear of being ridiculed...
From the fear of being wronged...
From the fear of being suspected...
From resenting that my opinion is not followed...


That others will be more loved than I, Lord Jesus, make this my prayer!
That others will be esteemed more than I...
That others will increase in the opinion of the world while I diminish...
That others will be chosen while I am set aside...
That others will be praised while I am overlooked...
That others will be preferred to me in everything...


Lord Jesus, though you were God, you humbled yourself to the extreme of dying on a cross, to set an enduring example of my arrogance and vanity. Help me to learn your example and put it into practice so that, by humbling myself in accordance with my lowliness here on earth, you can lift me up to rejoice with you forever in heaven. Amen. 

-Cardinal Merry del Val, Secretary of State under Pope St. Pius X

Picnics, sick babies and flowers

We had a weekend full of fun outdoor activities, and beautiful weather. Too bad that Gabriel nursed a cough (and I had to nurse Gabriel) all weekend as well.

The expression on Gabriel's face here is pretty much the same one he had all afternoon at the picnic. I guess if I'm being completely honest, I should mention that he did smile. Twice. 

On Saturday, we went to the Booz Allen company picnic. I enjoyed meeting more of Michael's coworkers and schmoozing with all of the other new parents. There were a lot of other new parents there, decked out with the most high tech baby gear I've ever seen. I guess that's what you get when a bunch of engineers have babies.

I felt practically primeval with our little Maya wrap. But maybe that's because our baby cried almost the entire afternoon, while pretty much none of the other young babies, in their European baby carrier finery, cried at all. :(

We did discover over the course of the afternoon why Gabriel was crying:
A) He was cold. We didn't realize how chilly the wind was, and we had left his little jacket at home and didn't have enough blankets with us. (I did end up running back home to get it after an hour or so though.)
B) He was sick. I am on the upside of a rough little cold that I kindly gave to Gabriel. His sweet little coughs became deeper and more productive-sounding as the afternoon went on, and we realized that the poor kid just didn't feel well.
C) He was sunburned. :( Gabriel's terrible mother brought sunscreen for herself and Daddy to put on while Daddy played in the company softball game, but she didn't think to pack any for her three month old. In her defense, let's assume that she simply thought Gabriel had built in sun protection.

I didn't have a completely terrible time at the picnic. I was glad that Michael got to play a fun game of softball with his coworkers, and they had great food and games. We even won $50 in Papa's restaurants gift cards! (Woohoo for our extremely small date night budget!!!) But having the Fussiest Baby on the Block for four hours in front of all of those people meant that I was very, very tired by the time I got home. Gabriel crashed down for a nap when we got home, and I did too!

Today, we went to the park to play football with a group of friends. Michael played, that is. I hung out with poor, sick Gabriel and the other girlfriends and wives under a tent they set up for us. He cried a lot of the time we were there, too. At least I got to cheer for my surprisingly amazing amateur football player husband, who played his heart out and was quite definitely in the running for game MVP.

Gabriel felt so bad this evening that I stayed home from mass with him. Poor little guy!

I told Michael that I would very much like to have a day with my girlfriends very soon. I think I could use some time out after the Weekend of the Crying Baby. Michael agrees. He did something special tonight--he brought home flowers for me after mass. :)

Last week of maternity leave...and no regrets

This week was my last week of maternity leave. 

I took a full three months off work, and I can't explain how wonderful and blessed it's been. After the first six or seven weeks of getting comfortable with motherhood, the last six weeks have been an absolute joy. Getting to spend so much time with Gabriel and Michael has left me with no regrets.

No regrets that I didn't hold him enough, or that I didn't take enough long naps with him on my chest. 

No regrets that I missed his first smile, roll-over or even his first Not-Enough-Wipes-In-The-World-Explosion. No regrets that I put off getting through my Responsible Woman To Do List so that I could spend an afternoon hanging out on the living room floor trying to make Gabriel say "Hi" again on video for Michael. 

I am a little sad to go back to work (even though I'll be mostly working from home). However, I can see where my brain might eventually enjoy getting more of a workout than calculating how many errands I can run before Gabe needs to eat again, or figuring out the right detergent mixture to get yellow baby poop out of my robe. :)

Laughing at Daddy

I love little boys in overalls!

Blue eyes :)

Sometimes I have to re-visit my "don't take it personally when they cry" post...especially when he looks like this!

Shoulda knocked on wood...

...because Gabe woke me up for some late night rendevous's (sp?) again all last night. Ah, the mysteries of babies.

I should have knocked on wood (or at least my desk) before announcing that my little boy is Sleeping Through the Night. In the future, see if I announce that he's potty trained or walking, for example, before he's been doing it for at least a month! :)

Sleeping through the night?!

Well, I guess I should announce that little Gabriel has slept for more than 7 1/2 hours for the past six nights! It has been quite an unexpected blessing! I had no idea when to expect him to start sleeping longer at night; all of my friends have had very different experiences.

Last Monday night, we put Gabriel to sleep at 8:15pm and didn't wake me up until 3:30am. I woke up, looked at the clock, and flew out of bed. After determining that Gabriel was still alive, I've never been so cheerful before in my life at 3:30 in the morning! Since last Monday, Gabriel has continued to sleep for 7 1/2 to 8 1/2 hour stretches every night.

I still can't believe it. I hope it lasts!

Rainy day pictures

Salmon disaster

As a Catholic woman, you would think I would know by now how to cook fish dishes for Fridays during Lent. For that matter, as a Louisiana native, you'd think I would know by now how to cook fish.

Nope!

I saw a big, beautiful pink salmon filet at Kroger last week that I knew would be perfect to have on Friday for dinner. The filet looked delicious and was already seasoned with lemon pepper (which we both love). I planned to have twice baked potatoes and Italian green beans to go with it. I just knew Michael was going to be impressed with me!

Nope!

On Friday night, when I took the clear plastic wrap off the styrofoam package of salmon, I looked in horror at the other side of the filet--it was the speckly grey outside of the actual fish on the other side! I was so surprised and horrified that I almost cried. I'd done it again. What a completely ditzy cook I was not to know that's how they package fish like that.

Remembering the days when my dad would bring home ice chests of trout and bass from his fishing trips, I decided that maybe I should just try to cut the skin off the other side of the filet before I cooked it. I remembered that my dad would always start at the tail with his electric knife and kind of just cut down lengthwise...

Nope!

It didn't work. I just made an awful chop job of the tail part of the filet. So I decided that the way you were supposed to cook it was just to throw the whole thing in the pan. That's what I did. I put the fish in the pan, scale-side down (so I wouldn't have to look at them), and let it sit there. Soon, the entire apartment smelled like dead fish :(. (That's the thing with little apartments like ours. When you cook something gross, it smells the whole place up quickly, and the stink stays around for a while.)

When I lifted up the salmon to peek at the bottom, the grey skin started sloughing off all over the place. It was then that I decided I wasn't planning on eating a bite of this supposed-to-be-impressive Lenten dinner. (Actually, if I'm being honesty, maybe that point was far, far before then.) I ended up deciding to try to "salvage" the fish by scraping off all of the skin part and throwing it down the disposal, then cooking the stew out of the fish for a while, then sort of chopping it up to make sure it was all entirely cooked.

Why oh why didn't I just call somebody to help me? Because I was stubborn and prideful, that's why!

So, aside from grossing out both myself and my poor husband for an entire evening with an apartment filled with Gross Fish Smell, my self-punishment is opening myself up to mockery by relating all of my idiocy on this blog. :)

In the end, I think the fish was objectively edible...but it sure looked awful. Michael stoutly and dutifully tried a bite of the fish's mutilated remains and asked if he could "just have a little" for dinner and find something else for the main course. I didn't make him eat it at all.

I haven't mentioned the very best part of my culinary performance on Friday night. Michael had fasted all day on Friday for his baby Godson, Blaise, who is very sick and is in the NICU. Michael was absolutely starving by Friday night, especially since he didn't get home until after 8pm to eat dinner. I'm convinced it was the graces from his fast that day that made him as kind as he was to me when he came home. Usually, a hungry Michael is not a happy Michael. (The same goes for me :)

At least I made a killer cookie cake for dessert that night. Lesson learned about cooking fish. Except I still don't know if that lesson is to never, ever try cooking a fish again, or if the lesson is to ask for help before ruining a perfectly good piece of salmon. :)