A Pirate Looks at 50

Maeve in her Hula Girl outfit :)

Haha... Dad was trying to look drunk here.... truth is, that was his one and only margarita, and I'm pretty sure he didn't even finish it :/

Some of my dads brothers, friends and my hubby.

I made a landshark cake :) My dad making his big 50th wish!

Yesterday was my dads fiftieth birthday! My mom and I had been planning for a week or so, to have this awesome Jimmy Buffet birthday. My dad is probably a bigger JB fan than me.... so we wanted to go all out!
My dad is a contractor and works his BUTT off SEVEN days a week!!! He soooo deserved a night off!!! He called in his best friend from when he was a kid (hi Uncle Dave:), my mom and I invited a few "work" friends and of course we invited the whole fam damily. It was awesome! Besides the mishaps with the cake and the dog-- see post above this one-- it was truly a fun, FUN day. A great break from the monotony of things...
It was really just a huge cook out with all the works, but somehow pork products always taste better when you're outside and surrounded by lovely people. We did have quite the drink menu though, which at my parents house was this huge ordeal. My mom and dad don't drink- AT ALL. Never, ever I have seen them drink- except this one time when my mom was having a panic attack and I made her order a glass of wine- she made a stinky face the entire time she drank it. But my mom had made the comment to me that my dad had been craving a margarita for sometime now (uh... I think it had been 20+ years since his last drink??) so she thought for his big 5-0 that we should make margaritas. The only problem was she had no idea how- so she sought out my professional margarita making help. :) It was soooo funny- she wouldn't even BUY the stuff... I mean she gave me the money, but I actually had to put it in the cart and show my I.D. Then after we had the tequila she made me store it at my house (not to hide it from my dad, but just because she felt so wrong having it in her house!) Anyways, with the help of my mix master cousin Mallory, we made some awesome margaritas and sangria (which some of the guests enjoyed a little TOO much.. ha).
The party and the drinks were a hit and it was an awesome evening. The weather was perfect- we had Jimmy on the stereo, friends and family, and margaritas in hand. The only topper to our party would've been having Jim sitting there right with us- on a beach in Hawaii... in our dreams I guess.
My dad is the hardest working guy I know- he is selfless and honest. He is cool as a cucumber and rarely has a "bad day." He has a positive outlook on everything and can always make me smile even when my tears are streaming. He's the voice of reason when I'm completely losing it. He was my first "love" and the healer of all things :) To this day, if I have a car problem I call him first over Ryan! When I was in labor, I was going strong until he walked in- he held my hand and I cried (he had to look away because he said he couldn't see me like that). There's something about dads & daughters.... He is always willing to help us out and he'd do anything to see us happy. He's the best poppa to Maeve and I pray that she gets to know him well over the next couple of decades :) Like my grandma likes to say, "he's a blue mooner"... one in a million. Love you dad! Sail on sailor! :)