Dinner Fiasco

I'd like to start this post like I start a lot of my posts: giving myself a pat on the back. Yup, I am proud of myself because I kept my cool and ended up with a successful plan B when plan A was burned...

Our neighbors have become really good friends of ours and tonight was our second time having them over for dinner. I planned way in advance to make BBQ beef sandwiches because I'd had a roast in the freezer for awhile that was too big for just my family so it was perfect for me to cook for guests. I put it in the crock pot this morning and set it on high to cook all day while I was at work. It would be ready to serve as soon as I got home at 5:00. I left Ricky with a grocery list so that he could stop at the market for side dishes on his way home from his route and I left for work. I was so proud of myself for finally using my crock pot and I was excited for our friends to come join us for dinner.

 As soon as I got home, I went to check on  the roast. The recipe I read online said to cook it for 10 hours so I knew it would be perfect by the time I got home. I lifted the crock pot lid and was instantly hit with an unpleasant smell. The edges of the roast looked quite crispy and the BBQ sauce was black, bubbly, and stuck to the sides of the crock pot. Then I tore into it with a fork to see if maybe the middle could be salvaged. It was dry as a desert. The panic started to set in as  realized our guests would be arriving in 30 minutes and all I had to serve them was dry burnt BBQ beef sandwiches. I looked at Ricky, suppressed the panic welling up within me and calmly stated that we needed a Plan B. He began to twitch nervously. I opened and closed the refrigerator, freezer, and pantry doors about 30 times looking for something to whip up in 30 minutes. For some reason I thought something would magically appear if I looked in the cupboard or refrigerator one more time. Nothing appeared. After tossing around a bunch of mediocre ideas, I finally put my foot down and decided to make an "on the fly" enchilada casserole. I texted our guests asking the to come over an hour later,  sent Ricky to the market again, put Maia down in her crib, stuck Noah in front of the T.V., and started working with what I had. I tried my best to ignore the angry cries coming from Maia's room (she was a little upset that I was making her sleep during her dinner time...she was really hungry). The more she cried and the more the minutes ticked by, the more my anxiety grew and threatened to rear it's ugly head in the form of me pulling my hair out and yelling like a mad woman while running down the street. To make matters worse, Noah decided that he didn't want to stay put in front of the t.v.. He wanted to loudly tell me that Maia was awake and crying and be in my way sweeping with my broom. So, while I was frantically frying tortillas and shredding chicken, Noah was knocking me in the head with the broom that was much to heavy for his little frame. I took a deep breath willed myself to be calm and politely urged him to use the small broom and sweep the dining area instead. He complied. Ricky returned with the groceries, I finished putting my casserole together, and stuck it in the oven. I put an end to Maia's screaming by getting her out of her crib and feeding her and then giving her the quickest bath ever. Right as I was finishing putting her pajamas on, the timer went off and the doorbell rang. Of course Ricky was in the middle of changing Noah's poop so neither of us could get the door. He quickly finished the diaper change and ran to get the door. I am sure we made a great impression. Noah greeted them half naked (shirt, socks, and a half fastened diaper), and I greeted them flushed and sweaty with my hair in my face and a crying baby on my hip. I just hope that they didn't notice the sweat beads on my forehead dripping into the casserole as I pulled it out of the oven. I said a quick prayer, begging God to let it taste good despite the fact that it was made under much stress with little sweat in it.

He answered my prayer! They loved my enchilada casserole and even asked for the recipe...Now I need a glass of wine and a massage...