Happy Father’s Day!

Here’s a big shout-out for all the dads out there! As my friend Sarah said, Happy You’re Only a Father Because I Birthed a Baby Day!

My own dad is a pretty good guy. He’s super handy and friendly and would do anything for you. He is one of the hardest workers I know, and everything I know about fixing and jimmy-rigging things I learned from him! It’s no secret that I’m the handy one in our house. Derrick provides the muscle if I need him to. :)

I know my dad sacrificed a lot while we were growing up. He was gone a lot and missed a lot of events, but when he was around he more than made up for it. He was always so insistent that we explore our surroundings, wherever we lived, and wanted us to love and appreciate our country. As a result, I’m super patriotic, and I owe it to him. That, and the fact that he was in the Coast Guard for 30 years and my mom was in the Navy Reserves! I love the military and those that serve and protect us!

This is very typical of my dad. He sent this to my phone last night. He’s really just a tall kid with gray hair. :)

Derrick has been a great dad, too. I always knew he would be, though. He was always so great with our nieces and nephews, and still is. Summer adores him. ADORES him. He always get the biggest homecoming squeals from her and is constantly chanting, “Dad! Dad! Dad!” I never get such an excited reaction out of her for myself, but I love how they interact with each other. She’s definitely daddy’s little girl.

Derrick is also a hard worker. He is super dedicated and disciplined. For instance, he’s currently going back to school to get his MBA through an executive MBA program. He has class two nights a week at work, Tuesday and Wednesday. So that he can study and do homework without it interfering with home life too much, he goes to bed at 9pm and wakes up at 5am so that he can do schoolwork at work from 6-8am before his workday starts. This means that he gets to see Summer Monday night and then not again until Thursday after work. That makes for a loooong couple of days for me, but it’s so nice because when he’s home, he’s home. He’s not doing homework. Weekends are strictly for fun and family time. It sucks saying goodnight to him at 9pm (especially tonite when he exclaimed….it’s still LIGHT OUT!), but I’m grateful that he’s willing to do it for us. His hard work is paying off, too. He got A’s in his classes last semester and probably will again this semester.

He is definitely a hands on dad, too. He has no problems changing diapers, giving baths, putting Summer to bed, or taking her outside to play. I definitely couldn’t do it without him. Well, I probably could, let’s be honest, but he makes it a LOT easier! ;)

I love all the dads in my life—they’ve all taught me something along the way to help make me be a better person and mother.

A picture for you: taken at a Jersey Shore party Friday night. Check out our poofs. And Derrick’s sexy slicked back hair and chain. 

Happy Father’s Day!

Nursery already??

It seems like yesterday I was taking this to church for the first time:

And then BAM! All of a sudden this went to Nursery last week:

How did this happen???

She loved it, like I knew/hoped she would. She didn’t even look back at me as she ran in and spotted all the new toys. The best part? They must wear her out so much, she took a huuuuge nap after church. And so did I. :)

Better enjoy my 2 months of peaceful church until the next one comes! 

Crappy hair spray

I bought some hair spray for Summer when she was about 6 or 7 months old. So, about a year ago. I wanted something to keep the little fly-aways that don’t make it into her piggies in place. Someone recommended a kid’s hairspray to me so I went and bought it. I hated it. HATED it. It has absolutely ZERO staying power.

This is it:

 

Of course I hated it. It’s a detangling spray. A small detail I failed to notice for a YEAR.

I can’t even think of an excuse as to why I never noticed that before. Sigh. 

Color changing thumb!

I have always longed for a garden. Living in our apartment, I would try and grow various herbs and plants, but would often fail. Not because I forgot about them, but because of the 1 hour window of sun the little 6” strip of balcony would get everyday. But still I tried, convinced I could get something to grow.

My perseverance apparently was interpreted by my dear husband as having a black thumb. He never fails to point out any opportunity how much I “like” to kill things. Yeah right, dude! Little pieces of my heart die every time I see one of my precious plants turn crispy and brown and then wilt away. That and the fact I paid like $7 for each little plant!

Well, now that we are in a home with a yard and space, I was determined to have a garden and actually grow something. We’re starting small, doing just one square foot garden. I followed all the instructions in the book I read about Square Foot Gardening, and we even built a little fence to go around it to keep the bunnies out. But guess what fits just perfectly inside each of those little holes in the fence? A hand belonging to a 2 1/2 foot little person with blue eyes and pigtails. Stinker.

Derrick is convinced I will fail again. Some support system, right? Take your negative energy and get away from my garden, yo!

According to the SFG system, you divide your 4’x4’ plot into 16 square foot sections, and then you can plant 16 different things. Seems like things might get a little crowded in there, but that’s what we did! We planted cucumbers, zucchini, carrots, onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, watermelon, canteloupe, pumpkin, and lettuce. We doubled some of the smaller crops. So far my cukes, lettuce, and pumpkin have sprouted! I feel like a proud mama, helping my little seeds to grow! I did get tomato and pepper plants at the farmer’s market, for uber cheap.

Speaking of uber cheap, or not, Derrick will tell you freely that this garden “cost over $100! It’s totally not going to be worth it, so I hope you just enjoy doing it!” What is with this dude??? Somebody please try and tell him to stop being such a garden scrooge! The prophet said to plant a garden and that’s what we did!!

Isn’t is adorable? I love it.

Oh, we also planted strawberries in a container a month or so ago. I do not have such high hopes for those. We followed all the directions for our Earth Box, but I think they have fertilizer burn. So sad.

Happy gardening!!

Seriously so in love….

with my peonies!! I had to cut some and bring them in to enjoy. I only wish they were in the front yard so everyone could see how gorgeous they are!! They smell divine. I really can’t get over the fact that I have so many beautiful flowers and did ZERO work to get them. Thanks, previous owners!