When the girls were young, I did my best to make sure they knew their way around the kitchen and could manage cooking at least a meal or two with no problems. From the time they were able to see over the edge of the counter, they helped me with meal prep and cookie baking. Once they were pre-teens, each girl was assigned a night to cook; they chose the recipe, I bought the ingredients, they put together fabulous (and sometimes not so fabulous) fixin's for the family ... mostly on their own.

But there's one thing I clearly forgot to teach them: how to cut up a chicken.

How did I come to realize this horrible mistake on my part? Yesterday Megan and I were discussing ways she and Preston could save money. Raising Bubby is expensive. Living where they live is expensive. Life itself is pretty darn expensive right now. So she wanted some tips.

One relative no-brainer I offered was to buy whole chickens and cut them up instead of buying the much-more-expensive-per-pound chicken breasts.

You'd think I'd suggested she use cloth diapers or head to the farm to milk the cow for Bubby's bottles.

"I don't even know where you buy whole chickens," Megan said.

Ummm ... at the grocery store, I told her.

"But do I have to cut off its head?" Megan asked in disgust -- and in all seriousness.

Oh! My! Gosh!

"Yeah," I told her. "And you have to pluck all the feathers, too."

I truly was flabbergasted. How in the world did I forget to teach this basic skill? It's not like it's knitting or sewing or making homemade jam -- things that are nice to know but not really all that important.

And how in the world can she not remember that I never once brought home a live chicken and decapitated it at the kitchen sink in preparation for our Sunday dinner?

I've done something terribly wrong as a mother.

To remedy the error of my ways, here's the long past-due lesson, Megan. (Brianna and Andrea: You better watch it, too ... as should any of you other youngsters who don't realize there's a whole lot more chicken to be had than just boneless breasts!)

(VIDEO DISAPPEARED IN SITE REDESIGN)

Sheesh ... I'm a scared to find out what other basic things I've forgotten to teach my daughters.