CROCKTEMBER

My son Alex came into the kitchen while I was plugging in the crock pot. “What’s that going to be?” He asked.

“Dinner.” I said as I moved the dial to eight hours low.

“I kind of thought it was going to be dinner.” He laughed as he shook his head. “But what are we going to be eating?”

“Beef stew.” I said as I grabbed the tea kettle and went to the sink to fill it up. “I was watching some videos on my phone where you make a crock pot dinner every night for the whole month! It’s called Crocktember! You have to see all the different recipes I’ve saved.”

“Crock pot dinners all month!” Alex cried.

“Yeah. It’s super easy and it’s just the one pot!” I put the kettle on the stove and went to get my tea cup. “I’m super excited!” I looked over at him. “Aren’t you?”

“Crock pot dinners for thirty days.” Alex sighed as he held up his arm halfway. “Yeah.”

“Oh, come on!” I laughed as I took a tea bag out of the canister. “You’re going to love it. I promise.”

Alex didn’t look convinced.

That’s when my husband Steven came into the kitchen. He walked over to the crock pot and peeked through the glass lid. “What’s this going to be?” He asked.

“Beef stew.” I took the kettle off the stove and poured the boiling water into my cup.

“That sounds good.”

I looked over at Alex. “See? Your Dad’s excited.”

“That’s because he doesn’t know we’re having crock pot meal everyday this month.” Alex reminded me.

“What?” Steven looked confused.

“It’s called Crocktember. Where you only cook in your crock pot for the whole month.” I explained.

“Do you have that many crock pot recipes?” Steven asked as he leaned against the counter top.

“I’m working on it.” I pulled my phone out of my back pocket and began scrolling. “Every time I see one that looks good I take a screenshot of it and save it.” I held up my phone. “I’ve got them all right here.”

Steven began shaking his head. “I’m not going to lie. I like a good crock pot meal every now and then but 30 days straight? I’m not so sure about that.”

“What are you talking about?” I took the teabag out of my cup and threw it in the trash.

“Not everything tastes better in the crock pot.” Steven said.

“I never said it did.” I took sip of my tea before putting it down. “It’s just an easier way to cook and now that school is starting up again I’m all about making things easier.”

“What if I grilled a few nights a week?” He asked. “Would that help?”

I thought about it for a second. “Well…” I tapped my finger against my chin pretending I was deep in thought. “If you insist. I guess we could cut back on the crock pot meals this month.”

“Yes.” Alex said with a sigh.

“Pork chops are defrosting in the fridge. You feel like grilling them tomorrow?” I asked as I picked up my cup and headed for the back porch.

“Sounds good to me.” He said.

“Me too.” I couldn’t help but smile as I headed out to the back deck. “That was easy.” I whispered to myself.