Giving Dad What He Really Wants

It's Father's Day Weekend! The ever-present question on everyone's mind is WHAT do we get Dad? My husband is extremely difficult to buy for, mostly because he isn't a very needful person and what he does want or need he just buys. So this year, I really tried to think outside of the box. I thought about my husband's current position in life: He's very busy with a high-stress job. He's wound tight and doesn't typically allow himself to cut loose. When he is at home, he's bombarded with the need for attention from our son. So, with that in mind what does he need? How about a "Guys Only Night"? I know how much I enjoy the nights I disappear with a few hours with my girlfriends, and he always does something special with our little boy on the nights I'm away. So, I thought he may enjoy this as well.

To make things even easier, I was accepted into the "McCormick's Grill Mates, Grill Ambassador Hosted Party" campaign through Crowdtap. They sent me an awesome kit full of everything I would need for a perfect cookout: Montreal Steak Seasoning, Molasses Bacon Seasoning, Brown Sugar & Bourbon BBQ Sauce, Spiced Brandy Marinade and Memphis BBQ Pit Dry Rub.

I got a hold of my husband's closest friends and told them I was hosting a "Guys Only" cookout at my house the weekend of June 9th. No wives, no kids, no need to bring anything...just the guys & their appetites.

To get prepared I spent all week cleaning up the garage and carport so the guys would have a place to hang out. I made sure the dart board had fresh batteries, that there was plenty of relaxed seating, ash trays available (even though we're non-smokers) and I stocked the garage fridge with beer, rum and Southern Comfort. I also bought stuff for mixers and put my blender next to the fridge. I also bought my son a TON of sparklers, snap-pops, snakes and other "kid friendly" fireworks to keep him busy while my husband was enjoying his friends.

The day before the party I started prepping the food. I premade all the hamburger patties. Half of them were seasoned with McCormick's Montreal Steak and the other half were seasoned with the Molasses Bacon seasoning. I added cooked, crumbled bacon to the Molasses Bacon burgers!

Aiden helped out by prepping the Spiced Brandy marinade and pouring it over the chicken breasts. We reserved some of the marinade to brush onto the chicken breasts to help caramelize the goodness!

We covered the pork chops with the Molasses Bacon seasoning. These were the bomb, the flavor really saturated the entire chop. I believe these chops have become a new family favorite!

I liberally coated pork ribs with the Memphis BBQ Pit dry rub. These were the first thing to fix the day of the party. We let them smoke for approximately 6 hrs over charcoal and Hickory Chips. They were the first thing to come off the grill so we could start grilling the rest of the food. While the rest of the food cooked, the ribs disappeared! Along with the Beer Cheese Dip* they made a wonderful appetizer!

The day of the party, I explained to my son that he could be a part of the gathering until after we ate, and then he & I would be going inside for the duration of the evening because the party really was just for "Dads Only". He did a fantastic job of keeping himself occupied with the little fireworks and we really didn't hear much of a peep from him.

I explained to the guys as they showed up that I was hosting a McCormick's sponsored party, and if they wanted to eat they had to be willing to have their photos taken. With the smell of all the food cooking, no one refused my request!!

Right after eating, the guys broke out their guitars and held a mini jam-session there in our carport. It was nice to listen to the music and see everyone relaxed and having a good time. The little guy & I quietly slipped into the background and went inside for a bath & a movie. I'm not sure what all else went on in my garage that night. I don't even know what time the party wound down. I do know there was no more beer of food left the next morning!

The best part of all though, was my husband giving me genuine thanks for all the hard work I put in to providing him with a fun night. He told me that he feels lucky to have a wife who truly understands him and that no other wife he knows would have thrown this type of party "just for the guys". What he doesn't realize, is how thankful *I* am for all the hard work he does to provide for us every day. He's an amazing husband and father who truly deserved to cut loose for once!

Happy Fathers Day to all you other amazing Dads out there! May there be beer & grilled food in your future!


*Beer Cheese Dip Recipe, originally shared from www.tipjunkie.com
2 - 8oz pkg cream cheese, softened
1 pkg dry ranch mix
1/3 C Beer
2 C Shredded Cheddar Cheese

With an electric mixer, combine first 3 ingredients. Stir in shredded cheddar cheese and let set up in the fridge for at least an hour. Serve with pretzels, crackers or bread!

New Swim Suits from Old Navy & Crowdtap

Once again, I received a great opportunity to get out with Seester and gear up for the summer thanks to Old Navy and Crowdtap! I was so excited when I was accepted into the Old Navy Bathing Suit Sample Share through Crowdtap. If you're not a member of Crowdtap, you're missing out on a lot of cool opportunities! As a stay-at-home Mom I have to keep close tabs on my budget and the opportunities to try out free gear and earn points to cash in on awesome gift cards are always present on Crowdtap!

As soon as I received my gift card for TWO free swim suits I posted a photo on to Seester's Facebook page and asked her if she needed a new suit!

With my 6 year old son in tow, we met at our favorite little restaurant, The Sunshine Cafe, for a nice breakfast and then headed to Old Navy.

We headed to the swimsuit section to make our picks. We were momentarily mesmerized by the walls of flip-flops. (Amanda more so than me! lol)

 Unfortunately, I think we waited too long to make our trip. The suits had been picked through so our options were limited. I wear a size XS - S and there were VERY limited options. I had originally had my heart set on this adorable red polka dotted one-piece. Unfortunately it was out of stock. The only one-piece in my size was a cute little yellow polka-dotted suit with a little keyhole on the chest. The keyhole is what ruined it for me. I have a very tiny surgery scar, but the keyhole framed the scar drawing attention to it. So, it was a no-go. My second choice was the pink sweetheart bottoms paired with the pink halter top. However, the bottoms were completely sold out and the top was only available in larger sizes. My 3rd choice was a very hot orange 2-pc with cute little O-Ring details, however once again it was only available in the larger sizes. I found a lot of cute tops & bottoms in my size, but not matching sets! (I would find a top in my size, but no bottoms that matched and vice versa) I did eventually settle for a very cute black halter top and black string bikini bottom. It was very flattering and very cute!

Amanda is a size M, and therefore had a lot more options! She tried on a cute turquoise 1-pc bandeau suit, the 2-pc pink suit and the white & black crocheted 2-pc. Of course, she looked amazing in all 3 suits! She wound up choosing the white & black crocheted 2-pc.

As we were trying them on, my 6 year old son was a real trooper, playing photographer with my new Sony Cybershot. THEN disaster struck, he laid the camera down while we were trying on suits. It hadn't been out of his hand for more than 2 minutes, unfortunately a dishonest person saw the opportunity and picked up the camera. A sales associate for Old Navy who was near us, realized what happened. There was only one other person anywhere near us and the sales associate asked the woman if she had seen the camera. The woman said "No" and quickly fled the store. So, my camera was gone along with all of our photos. Talk about disheartening and putting a major damper on the entire trip. However, I talked it over with my sister and we agreed to try on the suits all over again to try & "recreate" the experience, taking photos with our phones. We were able to get some shots, but they're obviously not of the same quality as with my real camera.

All in all, the day had it's ups and downs. There's nothing I can do to retrieve the camera, however we both did get new suits out of it! Best of all, we had a good day together. SO, now I am saving up my Crowdtap points until I get enough to cash in for Amazon gift cards to replace the stolen Cybershot camera.