Last night, I cooked a some traditional Banger pork sausage on the grill while indoors four large Russet Potatoes enjoyed a stovetop Jacuzzi. To the potatoes, I added a bit of light sour cream, a pat or two of salted butter and a lot of finely chopped chives from my herb garden. It marks the first time I have prepared this customary British meal for my family. I had a plate of Bangers & Mash while in London four years ago and loved it – last night I finally got around to making it at home. It is a delicious, fairly good for you meal and a slightly different take on the basic sausage and carb meal (which usually turns into an Italian entrée of red sauce and pasta). I need to expand my dinnertime capabilities and this was the first step. Bangers & Mash is officially on the rotation!
The weekend ended well. I played outside in the sprinkler for the first time this season – running and laughing with my three year old gal as we reenacted the Milwaukee Brewer’s famous sausage races. Because our hometown Phillies are playing the Brewers and because I knew I would be grilling sausages this week, I decided to show my girl some You Tube clips of the Klements sausage races at Miller Park in Milwaukee. She loved it and pretended to be the Hot Dog as she ran through the sprinkler towards the imaginary finish line.
I mention playing outside a lot in this space. It is no accident. My family loves being outdoors. As a result, I am pretty sure my daughter will have a healthy body image, a love of good food and an appreciation for physical activity. Good things, all of them. Having grown up rather sedentary, the last thing I wanted to do as a parent was to be plopped in front of the boob tube every night. TV watching is not, at age three plus, even in her mind – which is awesome. All she wants to do is play on the swing set, shoot hoops, ride her bike and read. Again, all wonderful things. Hopefully my goal of setting a good example on these topics will, despite my current weight loss struggle, impact her in a positive way.
Oh, one more thing – Ted Leo and the Pharmacists’ new record “Living with the Living” might be the best workout/lawn mowing/mulch shoveling album of the year so far!
Until the weekend!
Dad’s Losing It articles are published every Saturday and Tuesday. Follow Jeff’s journey during the rest of the week in the Dad’s Losing It Forum. In the Forum, Jeff discusses his individual workout routines and soundtracks, among other tidbits and musings from the week.
Jeff is a Family Fun blogger. Read more of his posts here.