Hot apple pie

This morning at 11:10 a.m. I was frantically searching for my toddler's red mittens which seem to have disappeared. I just don't understand how within 2 months I could have lost every single mitten of the 3 pairs I bought. I did manage to stuff him into his coat and find a camouflage hat for him to wear.

Because for some reason people think that my dear husband being a former Marine means we love camouflage. We don't. I think my DH would rather not ever look at anything camouflage again. But my dad bought this camo diaper bag and hat and I've been too lazy and cheap to buy anything different.

Let me tell you, me dressed up accessorizing with a camo diaper bag is smokin' hot. Even better if I have granola bar in my hair.

So now I will be carrying these things not only because I am too lazy and cheap to go buy new ones, but because they have sentimental value (dad bought them). Speaking of granola bars and dad...

Without fail every single time we get into the car my kid is suddenly starving,

"Num num? Num num? Num num? (higher pitched) Num num? NUM NUM?"

He will seriously do that for a full hour in the car if you don't get him something to eat. Even though last time I cleaned out the carseat I spent the entire time swearing that I would never again allow my child to have any sort of food or milk in the carseat ever again, I caved about 10 minutes into the next car ride.

So we got into the car at 11:15 a.m., pumped gas in the frigid weather with no pay at the pump (the freezing price I pay for living in a small town), and got on the road at 11:25. Holden started his num numming about 30 seconds into the drive, and the car was still pretty cold. I opened the console to fish out one of the sugar laden store brand apple cinnamon nutri-grain bars I had stuffed in there for emergencies.

And then I remembered that after my dad's funeral I had decided that the safest place for a little baggie of his ashes would be in the console of the car. I swore to Tony that I would take it out when we got home, but apparently forgot. So right next to Holden's mid-morning snack were my dad's ashes.

Lovely.

Okay, but the cereal bar was wrapped, so I threw it on top of the defroster to soften it up (tastes like hot apple pie!) and gave it to my dear boy. I know, unthinkable, right?
Such a proud motherly moment. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and so on and so forth.

And I promise those ashes are going somewhere safe until I can get to Africa to spread them (I really am going in the next 10 years or so).

I honestly think dad would kind of like his ashes in a ziploc baggie. I don't think it's disrespectful, it's the sort of practical thing he would appreciate. It's what the funeral home gave us, so it must be legal. And his ashes are riding in style in my caddy anyway. For now.

I miss him.