A Teaser...

Ethan and I made Fathers' Day cards the other day. Much like the Mothers' Day cards we did, these involved a photo shoot. I sure do love getting to play the photographer.

Here, since I don't think I ever shared it with the world at large, is the Mothers' Day card we came up with:

Super cute, right? Some of the outtakes were pretty hilarious as well.

For Fathers' Day, we decided to go with a slightly different colour scheme...and props.

Part of me feels like I need to play Billie Jean when I see these pictures.

I'll put up the final card layout that I put together on Sunday. If only I were as good at picking out presents as I am at taking cute baby photos and making cards. Especially Fathers' Day gifts...those ones are difficult. At least to me. I mean, it's not quite a birthday or Christmas, but it's still a special day. And then there's the fact that, while I may be overthinking it, most of the guys in my family aren't the easiest of men to buy presents for. Though to be fair; that isn't their fault.

Most lists of suggestions on the blogs I read tend to start with - you guessed it - power tools.
Problem #1: Me and my broke self aren't paying the shipping to send power tools to the States.
Problem #2: Even if I was fabulously wealthy, my dad and stepdad have most of the tools they could conceivably need.
Problem #3: Aside from my stepdad, who is helping Mom slowly revamp their house, none of the dads I buy prezzies for do too much demo and DIY...so power tools would be a bit superfluous anyway.

What about books? Well, yes; the guys I know tend to be avid readers. But my dad has so many books he doesn't realise when he has 2 and 3 copies of a given work. My stepdad was given a Kindle for a present, so he could really use a gift card rather than a physical hands-on book. My father-in-law is still a bit of a mystery to me in terms of literary tastes. That leaves the Husband...and though I know quite well what sorts of books he likes, I also know how little time he has to read, and I've already planned a specific book as a present to give him for his birthday/Christmas.

The old stand-by: ties? I just can't bring myself to do it. Especially not those cheesy ones you could get away with as a kid because you were 6 and it was cute for you to hand your dad this garish creation with your handprint on it in brightly coloured puff paint. And definitely nothing with words on it.

Ouch.

That brings us to the miscellaneous category:

• chocolates are for Thank Yous and miscellaneous anniversaries
• man-jewellery tends to run expensive...plus you never know who actually wears the shirts that require cuff links
• socks don't say anything particularly nice, and perhaps even say, "here; since your old ones had holes."
• Clothes are difficult unless you're brilliant at pulling a Vesper Lynd and sizing people up the moment you meet...I'm not.
• for people who fathered you or your spouse, gift cards feel a bit like a last resort. As in: only if it's a store they really like, only if there's nothing else they'd enjoy, only if they've asked for one.

Needless to say, my Fathers' Day shopping didn't take me very long: I started by giving up and moved on to card-making. Huzzah!

Okay, it's probably not that bad, but for this year, at least, I'm sticking to heart-felt expressions of gratitude with a cute half-naked baby in a Trilby. When I finally stumble upon the ultimate gift-buying guide for dads of all stripes, I promise I'll share the info.