No Dinner Fairies Here!

Being a farm wife can sometimes get in the way of your to-do list.

I'm a Type A personality who sincerely likes the order and symmetry of a to-do list and a plan for the day.

I'm not necessarily proud of this little idiosyncrasy, but I'm woman enough to admit it. So I just love days when I know my services will be required but not the timetable for said services (sarcasm intended).

Such was the day on Monday. I knew I would have to help move cattle. A mid-morning call on the business band radio from the hubby solidified an afternoon "appointment" on my to-do list.

THEN my farmer discovered that his pickup clock hadn't been changed since Sunday's return to Central Standard Time. He had a whole extra hour, so we could do the great cattle round-up and get two loads of cattle hauled back to the corrals by dinnertime (our noon meal).

I got my cattle moving shoes on and went to the pickup. It was 11 o'clock.

I really tried not to say anything, but I must admit, this slipped out:

"You do know that there are no dinner fairies who are hard at work preparing our meal, right?"

Yes, he knew there were no dinner fairies. (Just mouthy farm wives, I guess.)

He said he was fine with sandwiches, and I know he meant it - really. He, unlike me, is a go-with-the-flow kind of guy.

But by the time I got back to the house, I had a plan. So maybe there really is a dinner fairy around here. She just looks a lot like me.

It may seem more like soup weather than salad weather, but if you're looking for a fairly quick meal, Taco Salad may be an option.

I don't really use a recipe. I had hamburger thawed and ready to brown. After quickly browning it with a little minced onion, I put part of it in the refrigerator for another meal, then added taco seasoning to the remainder (I buy it in bulk at Glenn's Bulk Foods).

For the salad, I tore up lettuce and cut up veggies like I would for any salad. I added the seasoned hamburger, shredded cheese and some crumbled taco chips. For the dressing, I combined one can of chili beans and 1 bottle of fat-free Catalina dressing. You won't use it all for this meal, but it stores well in the refrigerator ... until another day when you need a dinner fairy to appear.

(Stay tuned for photos and stories from our cattle moving adventures. No more time today ... my to-do list beckons, along with my farmer who needs help rounding up the cattle before the vet gets here. The dinner fairy may need to make a repeat appearance, who knows?)

***

True confessions: I wrote this last night, but with my Type A compulsion to check things over again, I left it to "simmer" overnight. Then the electricity was out this morning on the County Line. My computer doesn't work too well with no electricity. Neither does the coffee pot or much else.

Hmmm ... just what I needed ... another reminder that I'm not in control at all. And perhaps I should not be so addicted to my plan. I'm a slow learner.