Caleb And The Meatloaf

July was so absolutely crazy busy with packing up our house, removing wallpaper from our new house, making sure all the ends were tied up, moving, not having internet for a few weeks and just every day life that I'd completely for forgotten this incident until the other morning when I was talking about it with the night shift dispatcher.

But this is such a 'Caleb' story, I have to post it for posterity.

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Chuck and I had already signed the papers on the house we were selling and now the papers were ready for the house we were buying. The day in front of me was going to be long and non stop.

We were set to sign papers at 11:30. I had already scheduled days off for moving and I didn't want to waste a whole vacation day. So, I went in to work at my regular time, took a few comp hours and left early. Since Chuck was taking the afternoon off as well, I planned for us to go to the city to pick up a hall tree I found on Craigs list.

By 1:00 all the papers were signed and Chuck and I took off for the city. Knowing it would be well after dinner before we got home, and already have eaten too much fast food that week, I racked my brain for dinner ideas. Then I remembered...

A couple weeks earlier I had made some meals for some friends of ours with a sick son. I made a couple extra to stick in our freezer. Reaching for my cell I dialed home,

"Caleb? I need you to do me a favor..." when it come to cooking I usually depend on Josh but since Caleb answered I wanted to give him the opportunity...

Caleb listened as I gave instructions, "In the freezer I have a meatloaf wrapped in tin foil. Get the meatloaf out and unwrap it. Make sure you get all the foil off".... you know how kids are- you have to explain these things step by step... "Turn the oven on to 350."... I dont mean to bore you with my simple instructions, but this next part is key to the story...

Hearing the tv in the background and not hearing much from Caleb, I called for his attention, "Caleb! Are you paying attention?" Getting a verbal response I continued, "Underneath the oven, you know where we keep the pizza pans..." Caleb mumbled in acknowledgment. "... get out the broiler pan. Its kind of bluish and has a top with holes in it so the grease can drain. You see it?"

I waited for Caleb to find the pan or it may never get done. After several seconds of hearing pans bang around Caleb confirmed he had the pan. "Ok, put the meatloaf on it and set the timer for 45 minutes. Call me back and I'll have you check to see if its done"

Chuck and I picked up the hall tree and were on our way home. Caleb and Josh had phoned several times over the course of 30 minutes so when my cell rang again I rolled my eyes and thought, "What now?" Flipping open my phone, "Hello?"

Caleb's voice was on the other end, "Mom?"... he's calling MY cell phone- like who else would answer??

"Yes, Caleb"

"Mom..." Caleb starts rattling off about a bunch of grease in the bottom of the oven and lots of smoke...

Realizing what Caleb had done, I halted him mid sentence, "Caleb! Did you put the bottom part of the pan underneath it?"

Several seconds of silence followed my question.... I could actually hear my words rolling around in Caleb's head... "noooo?!" Caleb finally answered as if he was asking the question. I shook my head and sighed heavy, trying to stay calm.

I've already been through one house fire. I don't want another one. And as of two days ago, this house wasn't even OUR house. Can you imagine me calling up the people that bought our house and telling them that the kitchen just burnt because my son started a grease fire?? Ha! That would not have been pretty.

"Get Josh to help you. Using the oven mitts, one of you lift the pan up and the other one put the bottom piece under it. Then open the windows to let the house air out." ...still shaking my head because this is just typical of how my day had been going... just before I hung up I added, "Call me when you get it done so I'll know"

"Ok" Caleb relied to all my instructions. I could tell by his voice that he was frustrated. A few minutes later, after not receiving a confirmation call, I called the house.

Caleb answered with a much chipper voice. "Is everything ok?" I asked.

"Yep" Caleb said "we got the pan underneath it and its not smoking anymore"

"Good. We'll be home in about half an hour" I flipped my phone shut and sighed. I was so ready to get. home.

Finally. Finally, after such a long and emotional day (its exhausting buying a house) we made it home.

The meatloaf was good, but sometime before we moved I would have to clean out the 1/2 inch pond of grease in the bottom of my oven