We do what the daddy wants.

My first Mother's Day was full of grief.  MM's Nana who I have known for the last 6 years and have grown to think of as my own grandma was losing her battle with liver cancer.  We spent the day gathered at Nana & Papa's Sapulpa house, whispering with family (she was very sensitive to noise) and snacking on grilled hamburgers.  Nana was so weak at this point and we all knew it was a matter of days or even hours until she would be gone.  Thankfully goodbyes were able to be said and Nana expressed her desire to leave this world and enter into the glorious kingdom of Heaven.  A whisper of I love yous would be the last words that we would speak to one another.  I know the hurt my heart was feeling and I know that the hurt in MM's heart must have been much worse, but he is a man of few words when it comes to talking about emotions.  Years of friendship and partnership have given me the ability to [usually] tell what's going on in his heart by the look in his eyes.  Nana passed away 3 days later on May 11, 2010; she is missed everyday.  Now we hold on to the love, life lessons, and memories she gave.

A cherished moment: Nana meeting her great grandson moments after he was born.

When MM's first Father's Day came around I really wanted it to be a happy day.  I am a sentimental sap.

The day started with a brightly wrapped surprise [He thought he had already received his father's day gift the previous week- that story to follow] package sitting on the kitchen counter Sunday morning.  It was a Tervis Tumbler [These things are awesome.  You should buy some. www.tervis.com] with "The Best Dad Ever" patch and inside of that a Starbucks gift card.  We went to church.  For lunch we finally tried Five Guys Burgers and Fries.  For months we have heard how good this place is and MM has been dying to try it... what better way to celebrate being a dad than with an awesome burger?!  That afternoon he wanted to wash his truck.  While this seems like a dull chore to me, it's fun for him.  Instead of staying inside like I usually would I put on a bikini and helped him wash and wax the cars.  The day was simple and relaxing and most importantly made the daddy happy.

Rad like Dad

The Ruined Gift (again!) Story...

MM is the worst at ruining the surprise element of gifts!  It's like his super power.  Without fail a week before a holiday or birthday he will go out and buy or announce to me that he is planning to buy the EXACT thing that I have chosen to give him!  How does he do it?  I'm stumped, because usually the gift idea is something he hasn't mentioned in months.  Or something I noticed would be useful/enjoyable to him, but haven't dared to utter a word about.  His Father's day gift was no different [I really should have known].  This winter we moved 1100 miles across the country, while setting up our new home we noticed project after project that could have and would have been simplified with the use of a power drill.  It had been 5 months since we discussed the usefulness of a power drill and I just loved the "Father's Dayishness" of the gift.  You know, because all dads are to receive ties or tools on Father's day.

At the beginning of June MM received a job promotion and along with it came his very own office which he decided needed a makeover (it really did, the last occupant was a pack-rat slob).  So he spent hours cleaning and organizing, decluttering and rearranging.  He found himself a new desk; abandoned in a back room of the hospital sat a big, beautiful, oak desk.  Out went the bulky, way too tall, ugly, metal desk that came with his new office and in came... nothing.  The new desk was too wide for the doorway and no amount of turning, sliding, or taking doors of hinges was getting it into the office.  The solution: take it apart and then reassemble it inside the office.   A task that can't be done without the use of... you guessed it, a power drill!

And this is how another gift surprise was ruined.

MM proclaimed (just 1 week before Father's Day) that he was going to Lowe's to finally purchase that power drill we had talked about,
"Remember honey when we talked about how helpful having a power drill around the house would be?".


Anyway, he did get the power drill.  Picked it out and paid for it himself.  And he did get that desk put back together in his office.