Happy St. Patty's Day!!!

Top O' The morning to Ya!!!  Lucky Charms greeted everyone this morning in celebration of the Carroll's Irish heritage.  All of the Carroll and McMichael ancestors migrated to America from Ireland.   Stephen and his children have a rich Irish heritage.  Lucky Charms were great for breakfast but this year I thought we would take it a step further and add a traditional Irish Corned Beef Brisket to our yearly green dinner menu.

I put the Corned Beef Brisket in the crockpot at 6:30 a.m. Sunday morning so it would be ready to eat at our 2:00 Sunday dinner with Papa and Momma.  I love coming home from church to the smell of a savory roast and was looking forward to the aroma.  As we entered the house, we could smell the meat cooking, but it didn't have the same enticing smell that our usual Sunday roast has.  It was just kind of funky...couldn't think of a better way to describe the indescribable scent.

The table was set with festive green plates and with the addition of new potatoes, green beans, rolls, and kiwi, we were ready for our Irish feast.

Presentation is everything and the corned beef brisket sliced so nicely and looked beautiful on the platter.  We all were concerned with the intense red color of the meat, but I reassured everyone that it was supposed to be that color....after all, that's what the Internet said.

Plates are full and ready to be eaten!  Stephen poses with his parents, who have become a weekly part of our Sunday dinners.  We love having them fill the empty chairs that were left by Ashton and Dallin at the Sunday dining room table.  You all know how I feel about empty seats!!!

With a vote of thumbs up or thumbs down for the brisket it looks like it was unanimous FAIL!!!  Everyone put the first bite in their mouths and then politely looked at me to see what I thought about my first bite.  My face involuntarily wrinkled up and I couldn't make it stop.  The morsel in my mouth was just downright yucky, there was nothing even pleasant about it.  As soon as I exclaimed how awful it was and that I wasn't eating another bite, everyone jumped in with their comments.  Nobody liked it, even Papa who is always so kind and respectful to me about my cooking joined in criticing the nasty meat.  We laughed and laughed all dinner long and were grateful to have Key Lime Pie to look forward to for our dessert.  An experience we never want to repeat.  None of us felt lucky after that meal.  I think the funniest comments consisted  of all of us having a new understanding of why Irish people loved potatoes so much.....they tasted better than the disgusting meat they had to eat.

Charlie is the only one who loved his Irish feast.....