daddy days

This post is a little late. I meant to do a nice post on Father's Day to recognize both Father's Day and Todd's birthday, and I am just now getting around to it. The holidays were back to back this year and as always, I am posting way after the fact. Better late than never, right? I love my blog, I really do, but it is extremely time consuming. It takes me an entire evening to write my post, upload my pictures and proof read before publishing. I know, sounds strange, but that is just the Journalism major in me. I am very particular. Yes, I graduated from IU with a journalism major and this is the only avenue in which I utilize my degree. Therefore I feel the need to make it as perfect as possible! Sometimes it is hard to find the time to do that.

So back to the purpose of this post...Todd (or Daddy) as he is commonly referred to in this house. Olivia is a total Daddy's girl. She loves to wrestle with him, play at the park with him, or just snuggle on the couch. There is definitely no denying how much she loves her Daddy. Todd just eats this up too. He loves nothing more than spending time with her. He jumps at the chance to take her to the park, or the zoo, and he is by far the best bath giver in the house. He has been in charge of Olivia's baths from the beginning. Once in awhile I get the pleasure of bathing Olivia and I have been told by her, "You are doing it wrong!". I have come to accept the fact that I do not give as good of a bath as Daddy does...and that is OK.

The weather was beautiful on Father's Day and we were excited about our pool party at Uncle VJ's (Todd's brother). The entire family was getting together to celebrate the holiday and Olivia was looking forward to showing off her swimming skills. This was our first trip to VJ's pool this season and until now Olivia had been attending ongoing swimming lessons at the YMCA, another activity she enjoys with her Daddy. I had not seen Olivia swim in over a year but I knew that she has gotten quite good. Boy, is that an understatement! This kid is a pro in the pool! With just a swim vest on Olivia can do it all. She jumps off the edge, treads water and even goes under...all without any help. Of course I forgot to bring my camera to document this great day, but I will be sure to share some swimming pictures later in the summer. It was a great day filled with family, food and lots of swimming, and we all had a great time.

By that night we were all worn out. Olivia did surprise her Daddy with a great homemade card she made at summer school. She also gave him a book of car washes, but I think that gift was a little bit for her too since she loves going through the car wash with Todd. Since I had gone the whole day without taking any pictures of Olivia and her Daddy I pulled out my camera to catch some snuggle time and before bed reading. I think Todd had a fabulous Father's Day.

The celebrating continued the next day with Todd's birthday! It is never too exciting when your birthday falls on a Monday but we did our best to make it a special day. I took Todd out for lunch and that evening we all went out to dinner. Olivia sang "Happy Birthday" to her Daddy every chance she got and she was counting the moments until it was time for cake. Now Olivia understands that it is not her birthday but that does not mean she does not want to help blow out the candles or help open presents. To her that is the best part about birthdays.

What better way to finish the birthday celebrations than with a BIG birthday hug! I think it is clear to see that Olivia loves her Daddy. And why wouldn't she? He is the best Daddy in the world. I love nothing more than to sit back and watch them spend time together. They have a special bond. One that is different than the one that I share with her. Their relationship is special and it makes my heart melt. One of my favorite sayings says it all, "Anyone can be a father but it takes someone special to be a Dad." That could not be more true. So Happy (belated) Father's Day and Birthday, honey! I hope that your two days were special.