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Just last week I got the best compliment from my son that a man can possibly get. When I asked him how he liked his breakfast, he said, "It was in the top five of my bacon moments." I was so proud that I posted it on Facebook.

My good wife saw the post and everything went awry. You see, I made the eggs, but I really didn't cook the bacon. She did. She baked it in the oven resulting in pork belly perfection that my son proclaimed, "not burnt and not chewy - awesome."

In my defense, I didn't tell him I made it; I just smiled and walked away in triumph. Those of you who have teenage boys knows what it's like to receive the slightest praise - deserved or not - and run with it.

To this end, I offer this formal apology to my wife. This isn't the first time our kids have given me praise for something that she's done. I've been thanked for wedding, birthday and Christmas gifts that I had no part in choosing.

The extent of my participation is uttering the noncommittal 'uh-huh' when my wife asks for my opinion.

My daughter has thanked me for UPS packages when I barely knew the contents. I've even ribbed my wife for a gift choice and found out later that toddlers still do play with a ball for hours. She's smart like that… simple or complicated, she knows her audience and enjoys playing to it.

This could be a gender issue. My mother was clearly the gift giver in our family. Even when we wrote letters to Santa, we gave them to mom to get mailed. Give them to Dad? Preposterous! He would have uttered the noncommittal, "uh-huh," and the letter would have been kindling in a yuletide fire.

A single-income family, our father financially backed mother's love for gift giving but left her entirely to the details. Keeping track of her son's likes and dislikes is what mom did best: a rocket kit for Charlie, art supplies for Jeff and a weight-lifting set for Mike. If my dad would have been cornered into buying me a gift, he may well have bought shrimp cocktail on sale - and I have a shellfish allergy.

I refuse to play the gender card, however. I am above such behavior even if my gift is the ability to lie by omission. This Thanksgiving, I will let my daughter know who sought out the perfect gift for her birthday. At Christmas, I will make sure my son knows who gave the presents that are under the tree. Like, Ebenezer Scrooge, I will be a changed man.

I most sincerely regret my Facebook post. Granted, it was bacon. I put the four tender slices on the plate with the same fried eggs I slaved over. You should have seen my boy's expression and his genuine sense of gratitude. As proof of my presentation, my post got 37 likes, nine comments and an invitation to a Missouri Bacon Festival. A man rarely lives to get that kind of praise. You'd think my wife would be more supportive.

Uh-huh.

- Doug Clough

Doug Clough writes a column for the Ida County Courier in Ida Grove, Iowa, called "From our backyard…" His work has appeared in Farm News, The Iowan and Boating World, and he served as a travel scout for Midwest Living. "I am a father of a salad bowl family (aka 'blended'), a customer service manager, the possession of my Labradoodle and - in a former life - an English teacher. Someone has to enjoy that mix; it may as well be me," he says.