Perfect

 

The other day I was standing in my backyard, Andy was relaxing on the deck, Bean was sniffing for rabbit poop (don't ask-it's weird) and Jack was running full speed across the lawn at his new basketball goal (courtesy of Granddaddy at Christmas!).  I paused and said to my husband - "This is what I always wanted."  Andy looked a little puzzled b/c at that point Jack had started throwing dirt at the garage wall.  But then I explained to him what I meant.  I love my life.  I know you shouldn't say that out loud but it's true.  And since I'm typing it and not saying it then it can't count against me, right?  Anyway, when I was in college this is what I pictured - 

1.  having a house (that we have made/are making our own)

2.  having a (sweet, hard-working, thoughtful, hilarious) husband

3. having a(n energetic, affectionate, goofy, adorable, perfect) child

4.  having a furry companion who would love my child as much as I do.

5. And finally a job (that although it pushes me to the brink at times) I truly love to do.

I basically got it all and once again, I realize the doom and gloom I am wishing on myself for saying it out loud.  But I realized that as i print out the blog every year I want a gentle reminder that no matter what minor, ridiculous setbacks or hiccups we might encounter (did I really throw my hands up in exasperation when the man at the wine store told me they had stopped making my favorite wine? Sheesh...) life is overall pretty darn amazing.

I think part of the reason I am aware of how amazing life is has to do with Vitamin D.  The weather lately has been AWESOME and I have finally had a chance to be outside and in the sun.  Behold - my future herb garden.  Andy dug up 3 bushes, 2 day lilies, and a nasty, hideous, repulsive, poor quality, utterly inferior Direct TV satellite dish. (I am a cable man's daughter and will forever hate the dish.)  I have big, big, big plans for this bed.  Think basil, parsley, rosemary, thyme, dill, tarragon...the list continues.  No planting yet - I'm waiting til after Good Friday.  Not since last year - when God "smite"d my basil with a hail storm before Easter.  Oh the horror.

And what could be more perfect than ice cream!  I mean, the outdoors also equal ice cream!  Thanks to Jack's Aunt Sissa, we knew to wear pajamas to Brewster's to get a free waffle cone! Someone looks happy :)

 

To continue with how perfect things are - here is a picture of our house when we moved in.  You can't really tell but the front beds were disgusting.  The girl who lived there before us never weeded, trimmed, or cared about her yard.  At first I felt sorry for her (she was my age, no kids, and getting a divorce) until we met a neighbor who started making excuses for her.  This neighbor - who thankfully has moved away since (he was wearing bicycle shorts when we met - ew) - informed me in a very defensive manner that this yard was just too much for a single woman to handle on her own.  He made the mistake of telling me this as I was standing in my driveway, covered in dirt, having weeded all the beds and trimmed all the bushes, and ALL the while carrying around a baby monitor so that when my toddler woke from his nap I could quickly go in and check on him.  I looked at this "DINK" - that's what he called himself "Dual Income No Kids - and shot him a death stare.  There is never, NEVER an excuse for letting your yard look like a spin-off of the Terminator movie series (think "Terminator 6 - Rise of the Weeds!")  I love my yard and love the potential that is has.  So as you can see from the picture, the front part looked a little fuzzy.

Last weekend, I got to dig up the ugly bushes and replace them with Indian Hawthorne.  It was awesome.  And all the while i got to enjoy the daffodils and tulips Lizzi and I had planted in the fall.

I cannot wait til these things are big and flowering and making my front walk smell like heaven.  Oddly enough there are some that will ask me, "Why doesn't Andy do this for you?  Why are you out there digging things up and planting big shrubs?  That's a man's job!"  I always feel puzzled at that remark.  Andy doesn't "make me" do this.  I force him to let me.  I love digging stuff up and planting things in my yard.  I know many share this passion and honestly I have always believed that the only career I would truly enjoy doing if I wasn't a teacher would be to own a nursery.  The giddiness that accompanies walking into a greenhouse full of flowers has yet to be matched other than in the classroom.

And to round out the perfection that is my life (I'm typing this with fingers crossed just in case) I have given birth to a boy.  A species that fundamentally LOVES dirt!  I sense a "gardener's assistant" t-shirt in his future. :)