Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Christmas Gifts. Mommy-o & Daddy-o Style.

I was talking to the Daddy-o couple weeks back, and he said, and I don't quote 'cause it's not all that accurate,

"Ya know? I heard that a gift means more when it's built by hand. It comes more from the heart."

(it was something like that. But less cheese.)

I agree, Daddy-o. Totally agree.

And so! He got to building something for all his grandkids for Christmas. Something big. Something huge.

I couldn't wait to tell you about it.  But I was sworn to secrecy until after Christmas.  Lame.

It started with this as inspiration:

Okay, now this, in and of itself, is totally bad to the bone.  Isn't it?   But that's not all. 

I should also tell you, that this isn't meant for here at home.  Oh, no.  It's meant for up at the Lakehouse.

Daddy-o built the. . . what do you call this part?  The rotunda.  The castle part.  The part with the cute roof.  The spire.  You get the point.

and it's made of cedar, and it smells sooo good. . .

Now. Picture it:

this rotunda/spire part?  It doesn't sit on the ground.  It's a treehouse.  Except there's no trees to make it a treehouse.  So you improvise.

Can you tell what these are?  They're telephone poles.  TELEPHONE POLES.  I didn't even know you could buy yourself a telephone pole.  Everyone should have one!

Picture the rotunda/spire/castle part, off the ground, treehouse/telephone pole style.

Now: what if, you could, like, zipline from that rotunda, all the way down to the other end of the property??
I am serious. Mommy-o and Daddy-o, people dream of this kind of crazy crap, but you actually do them.

And just for fun, as a sort of "mini" zipline, they put one along the ceiling in the kids' playroom at the Lakehouse.
And since nobody's actually at the Lakehouse for the holidays, the parental units gave the kids all the equipment for the zipline, and then made a video to show the grandkids their Christmas gift.

Wanna see it? Course ya do. It's that cool iPad app-- you know the one that makes your videos into movie trailers?


 My mom's pretty cute, huh?  I'm thinking this is gonna be a pretty exciting summer.


LeahTN said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
LeahTN said...

Seriously, can you loan out the Mommy-O and Daddy-O? People that fantastic should be shared! :)

Lisa @ Shine Your Light said...

WHAAAATTT??? They are dream grandparents…I can't believe they made that movie trailer, let alone the awesome zipline castle!!! How much fun for your kids to look forward too all winter!
Hope you had a great Christmas Mandi, you and your family and your big ol tree!!

Jen said...

Not only do your kids have THE COOLEST mommy on the block, they have the awesomest grandparents ever!!!! It's no wonder where you get you awesomesauce from! :)

Attempting Aloha said...

Gazebo. Is that the word you were looking for? Cuz that's what came to my head when I saw that cute little treehouse guy thingie. :)

I'd like one of these in my backyard. 'cept I don't think it would fit...Doh!

Connie @ Measured by the Heart said...

I would so love to pick your brains about adiy disaster I've got going on (flooring blek) but I will settle for one question. What should I use to stain and seal my stairs? I have this gel stain I want to use but what should I put over that? I don't want it to go yellow. Also is there an oil/water base issue I need to watch for in stain and sealer? Ok that was two questions. I will stop there. Thanks for being so awesome!

Tracy's Trinkets and Treasures said...

If I pay the court costs, will your parents adopt me?

SueAnn Lommler said...

That is such a terrific idea and it looks totally awesome. Wowzers!!!

Joanna said...

Dude, please adopt at least 3 of my 4 kids. They like fun and we suck at fun here. They. would. die. (figuratively and dramatically speaking) over this. Neat-o!

Evelyn said...

Oh my gosh, this canNOT be real...really? Where do your parents come up with these awesome ideas, and how did they acquire their incredible skills? This is AMAZING!

Libby said...

you could rent out your parents! They are sooo awesome, I'd like to be that awesome as a grandparent but I'll have to settle for being me.

Merry Christmas and glad it was a great day for you and the kiddos.

Samantha said...

I've dreamt of having a castle with a tower like that since I was a girl....are they willing to come to the UK with you to build me some stuff? I don't mind what it is, everything's awesome!

Emily said...

Tour mom is cute!! I saw this video I. Facebook. I looks like so much fun!

Cynthia said...

I was driving down the street to my home and what did I see... This in the garage of one of the houses I passed. I thought... where have I seen that before.....thinking...AHHHH on Mandy's blog. your family is the cutest.

Seo Sea said...
