Milk, and In-Laws

As my dear husband and I ponder our 10th wedding anniversary in a few months (OK, he hasn’t pondered it at all or looked inside his ring where he had me inscribe our wedding date and my birthday so he could remember) I thought of the early days.

After a year of dating, he took me halfway across the country to rural Texas to meet his parents. He’d already met mine, separately as they were divorced. His mother was brilliant. She spent five days talking me out of ever having a life with Jim, that he’s methodical, etc. He thinks in the shower so his younger brother used to cut off the hot water so there would be some left for him! But that mother, a couple of years ago I called her and said her son was driving me nuts spending months compiling a set of antique woodworking tools for our nephew. Her response? “I TOLD you…..”

So, this first weekend spent with his family was a doozy. Over 60 relatives for Thanksgiving and everyone wanted to know about the gal Jimmy brought. I was interviewed by Nanny and most of the older gents. The men never talk to me anymore – women are only there to bring food and do dishes. This is Texas!

The morning after I arrived I started to make breakfast (I do that) for everyone and couldn’t find any milk. The 150 cows had just been milked across the way and there was no milk for the scrambled eggs. Jim’s mother said there was some powdered milk in the pantry.  What??? She calmly explained that she no longer had two growing boys living at home so there’s no need to keep two gallons of milk in the frig at all times.

Wondering about that, I went out with Jim and his father on an errand to deliver some heavy equipment. His dad asked him privately “When are you going to ask her? It’s OK with me.” We eloped two months later.

Jim’s mother is a gifted baker and seamstress and we are sometimes glad we’re not there to eat her potato rolls on a regular basis (adds to the waistline) but we do have her quilts and other items on display at our new home.

Jim’s father loves animal husbandry, particularly bovines, and has a good eye for picking them out and is well-respected in the community. He’s a civil war guru (excuse me, as a northerner I never heard of the War of Northern Aggression) and we argue politics anytime we can. When they got their new tv I told him if he wanted to use TIVO he’d have to give up Fox News. Tehee.

It’s almost time to plan another trip over the river and through the woods for Thanksgiving. Our generation’s kids are growing so fast I can barely recognize them, plus they’re outside playing or running around so they never stop or show ID at the door!

Will we do anything special for our 10th anniversary? I don’t know. But I do love the family I married into. Love to Nanny, too!  Cheers, Dee