Oh deer!

Meet Bucky. Bucky will be my dinner guest quite a few times for the next six months or so.
I got down to butchering my buck, and I have to give props before I go on:
I had always admired butchers and their trade as a whole, but after this excursion, My tips to my local meatmen are going up (well, as much up as I can afford, along with this public admiring!). I fell into the "I can do that" trap that I am famous for...I've seen hundreds of deer, sheep, cows, pigs and various other tasty 4 leggers processed and, while I never thought it was easy, I also didn't think is was so *hard*! So remember to tip your butcher well, and if you arent using a meat market, start...the cuts are better and more economical than supermarket meat...how can their meat stay red after days of sitting out?
...yea, I got learned. My self meat butcher was more of an economic situation making my choice for me...I just couldn't afford it this year, but I did have a twinge of excitement thinking of the experience I would gain
So....I did finish the job with quite a bit of useful meat, it's not the pretty cuts one would find at the Meat Store, but I can tell what cut it is, and damned if they don't taste even more delicious! I attribute that to a heavy seasoning of pride, which is a common taste improver :)

Ala Cuisine!

I'm not much of a video game player, but when I found out they released an Iron Chef America game for Wii, I had to try it!
The game is pretty good...like all wii games it's a matter of learning movements (chop, stir, slice, etc) . There are 15 "secret ingredients", and roughly 8 variations of dishes for each, which gets a little repetitive after a bit. I found myself getting a little bored after an hour, as it doesn't seem like there is any challenge...as long as you complete the dishes, you win the challenge (from what I can tell...I havent lost one yet, and I'm at "4 stars" now).
There is a Vs. option, and I had a blast watching my 7 yr old son trying to whoop me (it was 50/50)...All in all, it was an ok game...nothing impressive, but still a nice boredom releiver and a cool addition to a foodies shelf.

I Slacker

I just realized it has been two months since I've put anything here...can't expect readers if I don't lay out anything to read!
K, so a quick recap of the past 60 days: my youngest was diagnosed with some developmental issues...a "minor case", but it still requires a lot of work. So, I've been using Allrecipe to plan out the weeks meals (with my boys help)...it gives me one less stressor to worry about, there's many things the kids can help with, so it works on his conentration, fine motor skills, and quality "dad" time (I get my quality kid time as well!), and a nice byproduct is healhty, nutritios meals every night. And, I don't have scientific basis for this, but kids involved in the prep will eat things they *swear* they don't like. Case in point, we made a beer-batter fish Tuesday eve; Both my kids insist they don't like fish...my younger one very adamantly...but clean plates abounded (my youngest had THREE servings!)

I should also add that I finally got back out hunting (after a 15 yr hiatus) and bagged a monster 8 pointer (155 lbs dressed) and I'm trying my hand at butchering it myself...it is ALOT more difficult than I ever imagined, but a fantastic learning experience, and a great teaching point for the kids....get them to realize how that steak goes from a cow to sizzling on their plate. I will publish my recipe experimentations as I go along...there will be a'plenty!