[DonDavis]

As many of you know, I divorced last fall. With Valentine’s coming up, I was trying to think of what to do for my 8 yr old son. Then, it came to me. I’ll just have a “guy night”. No candy or cards. Just him, me and a couple of steaks. Here’s how it went…

He was at his Mom’s last night and this is my weekend with him. When I got him from school today he asked if I had anything planned for Valentine’s Day. I said “Yup. We’re going to a butcher shop and pick out some steaks for dinner. You get to pick out a T-bone." I don’t think he’s ever had one and thought he would get a kick out the 'bone' factor.

We went to Midwestern Meats and he chose his T-bone and I picked out a 'bone in' ribeye. Walking out he asked how much it cost. I told him it was about what I would have spent on some candy, a toy and a card. Back at the casa, he helped with the prep of potatoes, peas and Pillsbury rolls. He put the steaks on the grill, turned ‘em and pulled them off. He went to work on his steak like a pro. I’ve been showing him how to hold his knife and fork. He was doing pretty good and tore through the larger side without missing a step. Mix in some potatoes & peas and I could see him slowing a bit. I showed him how to cut away the other side for leftovers and then told him to have fun chewing the few pieces left on the bone.

He’s been doing well with table manners and thought I would let down the guard for a night. During so, I told him why I did not get him a bunch of candy. I kept it simple.
“Son, Valentine’s Day is a holiday built for women. Guys don’t exchange gifts but something from your Grandpa is ok. Usually, guys work pretty hard for their girlfriends or wives. Guys get gifts from girls but it’s more about the girl. I just wanted to have great dinner with you and tell you I love you.” We chatted a bit about the whole thing and it went pretty well. I didn’t bash on anything. It was more about what I wanted to do with/for him.

What he said at the end was the best gift I could have received.

He wiped his face with napkin, looked at me in the eye and said “Dad, I can’t thank you enough for this awesome dinner. It was the best steak ever.”

“Son, you just did.”