Holidays are always a little different for our family than most of those we know. I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned it before but my husband’s career field is very demanding, time wise. Every holiday whether it’s big like Thanksgiving or small like Valentine’s Day is spent without my husband around. You see, he works in law enforcement and has had maybe 3 to 4 holidays off in the last 5 years. It’s hard on our family. There are rare occasions when he gets to come home on time on a holiday and we jump for joy knowing he gets to have dinner with us, a seldom thing around here. Today was one of those days. He really lucked out and wasn’t directed to work overtime. We were ecstatic to have him home with us to celebrate Labor Day.
 Every holiday the kids and I usually head over to my in-laws. It’s a nice little break for me since the kids have so much fun playing with grandma and grandpa. Today was even better since the hubs was there with us.
Like on most holidays my father-in-law planned to BBQ to celebrate Labor Day. He’s an excellent cook who has taught me quite a bit over the years. He can grill a steak like no other!
I’ve actually come a long way when it comes to cooking beef. I can make chicken pretty well but years ago you would have been worried to eat a steak I cooked.Â
I’m pretty sure I’ve mentioned this before here but I used to be one of those people who would cook meat dry in fear that there’s a trace of bacteria alive in it. Which as you know doesn’t make for a very yummy meal. Luckily with a food thermometer and grilling expert for a father-in-law I can now say I’m pretty good at cooking beef.
Today he taught me how to smoke New York steaks. To make tonight’s tasty meal he soaked mesquite wood in water for about an hour before starting the grill. The steaks were seasoned with kosher salt, pepper, and garlic powder then smoked in the grill. Fun fact I just learned, if you close the lid its called smoking the meat if you leave it open it’s grilling. I had NO idea! Yes, you can totally laugh at me. :)
The kids spent the afternoon running through the sprinkler and playing with water toys. Sometimes that’s the best kind of fun, don’t you think?
Then of course we ended the day with the best Summer dessert ever created…S’mores!
 
It may not have been an awesome Labor Day getaway but it sure was a great one. :)
Thanks for stopping by! I hope your family had a great Labor Day weekend!
I can so relate to this, my husband hardly ever is home for bath time (I know the simplest of things) but instead he arrives home really late from work after one client or another had a last-minute emergency, sometimes he will leave at 7 am not to come back until past midnight. Last week for the first time in months he came home just as bath time was about to start. My daughter, 2 years 2 months, got so excited it was unbelievable. It made it very clear to me just how much she’s not used to it. Moments to treasure.
I was a bit like you with meat but my beef I do like rare! Fantastic photos by the way
You food looks great! I am like you used to be when it comes to cooking meat so I know where you are coming from. Glad to hear your hubs was able to come home and enjoy it all with you guys!
Jennifer @ Decorated Chaos
It looks like you had a great time!
Food looks wonderful, I’m so glad the kids got some daddy time :)