Y'all Hush: Father's Day

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Father's Day

Hey y'all -

For Father's Day, we picked out a bunch of small gift items for your dad, and then Laney hid them around the house and yard so Dad could search for them Easter egg hunt-style. To "help" him with his search, she drew him a map to all of the gift locations. What really helped him is Grandma Sue giving him subtle clues, like, "Go look in Laney's desk." Laney even hid one gift - a T-ball set - in her treehouse.

I think between the three of us girls, we remembered where everything was hidden, but if anyone comes to visit us in the next year and finds boxer shorts in the shampoo bucket, or a coffee mug in the dog food, you'll know why.

I was a fool for thinking that a T-ball set was a gift that you two could share with your dad, because you did not want to give him a turn.

I had thought that Hagen would like this gift best, because he's normally such a fan of banging the snot out of things, but it turns out he wasn't the real (or only) heavy hitter in the family.

Then we all went to Morell Falls for a hike. I had prepared for summer conditions - I put sunscreen and swimsuits in my backpack. I forgot to remind myself that I live in Montana; the trail was overcast and in the low 50s and holy moly at the mosquitos. My kingdom for a can of Off.

The only thing that kept the swarms from eating us alive was to keep moving. Can't stop! Can't snack! Can't potty! This is an excellent exercise plan, by the way, if you like your workouts inspired by The Hunger Games.

I gave Laney "I Never Need A Jacket" Burbach my windbreaker to wear so the skeeters couldn't get at her. It's like when I ask Hagen a million times if he wants something to eat, and he insists, "No! 'on't want to! On't want sammich! NO!" So I make myself a to-die-for ham and melted cheese on a pretzel roll. And then he looks up at me with those big eyes and asks, "I have it?" And I give him the damn sandwich. This is what parenting is, people: walking around tired and hungry with bug-bitten arms.

Ella went with us and had a hell of a time.

I took fewer pictures than I normally would; in fact, this is almost all of them from the day, because in the 2.5 seconds it took me to meter my camera for the light, the vampiric bugs would descend.