Last week we had the graduation dinner for Alex’s homeschool co-op class, and last night we had the graduation dinner at our church. My emotions can’t take many more graduation dinners, and neither can my hips: Last week, the fare was drippy, delicious Italian.
Last night, it was my very favorite nationality of food ever: Church Potluck.
Skilled churchwomen made sure to include the four seniors’ favorite foods: Alex’s was mac and cheese.
Casie’s was a delicious beef-and-bean dish.
Joseph’s was deviled eggs. How cute is that?
And Marshall’s was apple pie!
Alex took the liberty of getting one of each dessert.
I think there were something like 176,000 of them.
Casie, her mom, and sisters have been singing in church lately, and we’re going to miss Casie’s voice when she goes to college!
Marshall and Alex have been friends for awhile. I’m FitBit friends with his aunt, his uncle is our insurance agent, his cousin used to babysit my kids, and the list goes on.
Joseph (far right) is the younger brother of a boy (now man!) who used to cowboy on our ranch.
Everyone’s connected around here!
Many people from our church attended the senior dinner whether they had a senior graduating or not, and that’s just one of hundreds of reasons why I love our church. After dinner, we played a big round of “How Well Do You Know Your Senior,” which was sort of like a parent-child version of The Newlywed Game, where both parties write down their answers and hope that the answers match.
Here are the questions I got right:
“What is your senior’s favorite superhero?”
Answer: Iron Man.
Bingo! (It’s a Robert Downey Jr. thing.)
“What’s your senior’s favorite food?”
Answer: Mac and Cheese.
(This was kind of easy for everyone, considering the tags on the potluck table.)
I got lots of answers wrong, though—mostly because I was trying to be a know-it-all and not listen to Alex’s siblings, who knew the answers I did not know, such as:
“Who was your senior’s first crush?”
Answer: Gavin.
(I guessed “NOBODY EVER, BECAUSE SHE’S MY SWEET LITTLE GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!”)
“What is your senior’s favorite movie?”
Answer: 13 Going on 30.
(I guessed “THE GODFATHER,” at which point Alex looked at me from the stage, held up her hands, and mouthed “What??? I’ve never seen it.” and my husband leaned over and said, “They didn’t ask what your favorite movie is, honey. This night is about Alex.”)
“What was your senior’s favorite family vacation?”
Answer: Orlando.
(I guessed “VAIL,” at which point Marlboro Man leaned over and said, “They didn’t ask what your favorite family vacation is, honey. This night is about Alex.”)
But at least I got the last question right, and it was the most important.
“What will you miss most about your senior?”
Alex thought for a minute, looked at me, grinned, then scribbled a word and held it up: “Everything.”
I held up my sign at the same time, and there it was:
“EVERYTHING.”
And then I cried.
Speaking of crying, I have another anecdote. I know the evening wasn’t the least bit about me (other than the fact that I gave birth to one of the four seniors) but I have to share something horrible that happened to me at the senior dinner. Even though it just occurred last night, it has shaped my life in a negative way and I fear for my future.
As I tend to do at our church potlucks, I asked one of my kids to “surprise me” with a dessert when they were heading to the dessert table. Paige brought me a beautiful, glorious piece of mile-high fruit pie—layers of cherry and apple—and more whipped cream on top than I ever thought could be on top of a pie. “Ooooh, Paige! Great choice!” I exclaimed, as she set it in front of me. I couldn’t wait to finish my green bean casserole, mac and cheese, cucumber salad, fried chicken, potato salad, baked beans, and deviled egg so I could dig into it.
As the seniors were being introduced, I thought it would be a good idea to dig into the pie. As Lori, the organizer of the senior dinner, read Casie’s list of accomplishments and Casie prepared to speak, I speared several layers of fruit, especially the apples, since they looked particularly moist and juicy. My eyes were mostly on the area of the podium, so I used my peripheral vision to dunk my whole fork in the cloud of whipped cream before bringing the whole thing to my mouth and wolfing it down.
I didn’t even have to bite down all the way to realize the tragedy that had just unfolded. Turns out, the moist, juicy apples weren’t apples at all.
They were…
They were…
They were bananas.
The End, because I’m not yet ready to talk about it in detail. I’ll let you know when I’m ready.
Love,
Pioneer Woman
Ree Drummond is the founder of The Pioneer Woman and a lover of butter, basset hounds and life on the ranch! Ree started her blog in 2006, and now millions visit ThePioneerWoman.com every month for her trusted recipes and fun family stories. Here’s what she has been up to since it all began:
New York Times Bestselling Author
Ree has written two memoirs (Black Heels to Tractor Wheels, and Frontier Follies) plus nine bestselling cookbooks:
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl (2009)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food from My Frontier (2012)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: A Year of Holidays (2013)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime (2015)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Come and Get It! (2017)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: The New Frontier (2019)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Super Easy (2021)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinner’s Ready! (2023)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: The Essential Recipes (2025)
Food Network Host
Since 2011, Ree has been sharing simple, family-friendly recipes—and the occasional kitchen prank!—on her award-winning show The Pioneer Woman, filmed right on Drummond Ranch. Ree is also a regular judge on Food Network competitions, including Christmas Cookie Challenge.
Founder, The Pioneer Woman Collection
Ree has been creating and selling kitchen and home products at Walmart since 2015 and she’s involved in designing every piece and pattern. The line now includes best-selling appliances (you have to see the floral blender!), plus hundreds of pieces of cookware, tableware, and more. Ree doesn’t like to play favorites but the Agatha print has a special place in her heart.
Restaurant and Hotel Owner
Together with her husband Ladd, Ree has opened several bustling businesses in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, including The Pioneer Woman Mercantile—a bakery, restaurant, and general store that draws visitors from across the country (many come for the biscuits alone!), P-Town Pizza, Charlie’s Ice Cream Shop, and The Boarding House, a charming hotel with eight different rooms decorated by Ree and Ladd.
Media Personality
Ree appears regularly on national TV shows like Today, Good Morning America and more—all while managing to keep flour off her shirt.
Wife, Mom and…Grandma!
Ree’s kids (daughters Alex and Paige and sons Bryce and Todd) are all grown up, and as of December 2024, Ree is the proud grandma of the cutest baby ever, Sofia Scott, born to Alex and her husband Mauricio. Ree still cooks for Ladd (and the kids when they’re home), and she also looks after a few mischievous ranch dogs.
