Most who know my family would say that calling us “competitive”
is a bit of an understatement. Growing up, my boys made almost everything into a competition.
They still can be that way—especially with each other.
Last year, my husband decided to use that competitive spirit to get them all home
for Father’s Day. So he announced the first annual burger cooking contest.
It almost worked. One son was unable to come home
but since his dad was joining him the next day for a fishing trip, we “elected” him “The Judge.”
We made a slider version of our burgers, placed them in a specially marked lunch sacks
with all of the special condiments and instructions for assembly and sent them with my husband.
Without knowing who made what burger, that son declared his twin the “winner.”
The creative juices started flowing early for this year’s competition,
and everyone made it home. A lot of thought and creative cooking went into this year’s burgers. There was homemade mozzarella cheese, roasted blackberry barbecue sauce, pineapple-avocado guacamole, Dr. Pepper bacon, fresh cucumber tzatziki, and unique ingredients like duck fat.
Everyone was busy mixing, chopping, tasting, and cooking. No one was secretive
about what they were cooking but all were pretty confident that they would win.
When my kitchen looked like it qualified for an episode of “Restaurant Makeover”,
it was time for the judging.
My son’s friend graciously agreed to judge our contest so that we all could participate.
He didn’t have an easy job. It played out like an odd version of “Chopped” with each one
presenting their burger and describing it’s creation and attributes before he tasted each one.
He made great comments like:
“Wow, I have nothing to compare that to!”
“He knows what a man wants in his burger.”
“That looks too nice to cut and eat.”
After much laughter and fun, the winner was announced.
For the second year in a row, Jordan had won!
There was much boasting on his part, and
justification on the rest of our parts for why we didn’t win.
Overall, we had a wonderful Father’s Day. We gathered after attending our
respective church services and thoroughly enjoyed our rare family time together.
Not all the friends that we invited to join us were able to
but we know they will be part of a gathering in our home at another time.
Does your family have friendly competitions? Are they spontaneous or planned annual events?
I would love to hear about them!
I’m thankful that my family enjoys spending time together
and when it is all over, we still love and like each other.
Their willingness to invite others to join us for this family day
shows me that I have done something right as wife and mom
because they all share my heart for home!
