On Father's Day we all went out to Perry City...Bubka and Odin kept the wee one busy while John, Angela, Mike, and I built a deck. And unlike Rome, we did it in just ONE day! Well, almost one day. We started with bare ground and had a perfect BBQ place by sundown, but a complete railing and stairs took another few days to finish. Not bad at all. We've already had a half dozen BBQs, late night wine tastings, and early morning coffee breaks on the deck. And Laia looooooooves it...

Planning begins on site and with a "done is good, done is beautiful!"...

...we charge into deck building battle!

Of course, with John's arm out of commission Mike was the only one who could wield the God-Drill without risking a broken wrist. So Angela and I did the heavy lifting. Rah for grrl power!

Victory! Or at least, Deck! Amazing, fantastic, insert superlative of your choice here outdoor room...done in a day. Essentially a giant outdoor playpen for Laia and a shady spot for BBQ. And speaking of BBQ, let the grilling begin!

John summons the spirit of fire...Father's Day evening begins with a new deck and a spiffy wall of flame! We added railings over the next few days, but that first evening we decided we'd rather eat dinner than finish the fiddly bits. Good choice!

Note the spiffy railings!

more railings!

After much hard work comes much deep sleep...on Dada's lap if possible.

But the floor will do in a pinch!

And what are we resting up for? The to-and-fro of toddler life. Running here...running there...a non-stop toddler action adventure set in our very own living room. Hmmmm, maybe we should have stayed on the deck?

round and round the couch we go!

And the puppy eyes are ready...Please mama...Please Dada...may I please have a little bit more time on the deck?