Thursday, September 13, 2012

Just what makes a prize "grand" anyway?

Big Tall Hubby went on a golf outing this summer and when he returned he was beaming from ear to ear. "I won tons of prizes at the raffle, even the GRAND PRIZE!" His exact words. I'm thinking, "yes, dinner gift cards! Macy's gift cards! Container Store gift cards!" OK, so maybe the Container Store is a stretch for a golf outing grand prize, but I mean, that would be grand for me! 

Instead he comes in the house with all kinds of stuff. Like this big Corona bucket. Hmm. It looked like he might have just swiped it off the picnic table, it even had some crumbs in it. He was excited because it had new golf balls and a restaurant gift card in it. OK, that's kind of a good one I guess. The restaurant is by his work and so I said, "you might as well keep it at work, you might need it for a working lunch someday." Bummer, nothing for me, I mean shouldn't I get something too? I was home with the kids in the heat while he was being all manly golfing! Big Tall Hubby said, "aren't you excited about this bucket? You're always buying these at Ace Hardware." True, but the stamped Corona isn't really my style. So it went in the basement until I could figure out what to do with it/ignore it until I could put it in a Goodwill box secretly someday.
Then Parker got to go to Louisville, Kentucky (Go Big Blue- it will be basketball season before you know it!) to see the Louisville Slugger Bat factory and a minor league baseball game. He loved it. He was in heaven. If you live close enough, take your boys (and girls) it is so awesome!
He got a monogrammed bat and a holder, darn I forgot to take a picture of that. And he got another miniature bat to add to his growing collection. This boy is going to be the star of "Hoarders" or "American Pickers" someday, he loves to collect things. Anyway, he loves these mini bats and he plays with them all the time. I am always tripping over them and spinning my feet like Fred Flintstone when I am walking in his room. I have been trying to find a cool way to display them so that he can still get them down to use. 

Nothing inspiring on the web so I grabbed the Corona bucket prize and got to work. I found our old can of chalkboard paint and sprayed over the logo (that's why you see blue painter's tape in the first picture) and that was it. Who doesn't love chalkboard paint? We put the bucket up on his dresser when he isn't using it so no little guys can get their hands on the weapons of mass destruction and it seems to be working out great.
 Best part, when he gets tired of the bat collection or he goes to college and I finally get the craft room of my dreams, I can re-purpose the bucket. 

 My favorite picture of his Louisville outing, he is waiting for a player to sign his ball. Isn't he so cute?
 So here is the GRAND PRIZE from the golf outing. The umbrella, not the kid. I'm not joking. You should have seen Big Tall Hubby pull this thing out of the giant box. It was like the dad in A Christmas Story and the leg lamp. I am not exaggerating.  He was so proud. I was so mortified. I put that thing back in the box and promptly put it next to the Corona  bucket in the basement, hoping I'd never have to see it again.
Then some crazy wind/tornado storm blew though our town and our nice, tan and black, perfectly matching our patio furniture umbrella flew off our table and into the neighbor's yard, barely missing our windows. It was insane. It had about 37 holes in it by the time we got it back home. I priced out new umbrellas to match the old one and I decided that the GRAND PRIZE Labatt's Blue beer umbrella (probably swiped off the patio of the golf outing place) was good enough. I still cringe when we put it up.  We look like a mexican restaurant from the road. Tacos for sale! I am hoping the sun fades it really fast but probably my luck, this thing will last forever. GRAND indeed.

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