Tatum had pickleball camp all week,
so we ended the week the only reasonable way: with a room makeover.
Not a full HGTV situation, but close enough for a 13-year-old girl who now has enough products to require real estate. (and there are many).
Yes, she is officially at the stage where a “beauty routine” is no longer one bottle and done. It’s cleanser, moisturizer, sprays, lotions, hair things, lip things, and then a few more things after that. Then maybe she’s done. But probably not. So we finally got her a vanity to hold all the many, many 13-year-old products.
The reviews for this vanity said things like, “Easy to build! My dad did it!” Which, honestly, should have been our warning. Dad worked from home that day, which basically meant Dad worked from Tatum’s bedroom. But before he did, Cooper had no idea why Dad’s home. So he does what he usually does: Torments him with the stare. The stare and the toy. Play wit me?
The box arrived, the pieces came out, the instructions appeared, and suddenly Doug’s whole day had a very different assignment.
To be fair, Tatum did build the chair herself. Completely herself. I was so proud of her. Then she immediately sat in it, spun around and around, and basically made herself nauseous. So, you know, independence with consequences.
Meanwhile, Cooper had absolutely no idea what was happening. So, again, Cooper kept bringing toys. The pineapple. The rings.
Whatever he could find. Then he would stare at us like, “I have presented the offering. Why is no one responding?” Poor guy was completely confused by this whole work-from-home-but-also-build-furniture situation.
While Dad worked on the vanity, Tatum reworked her dresser. Her room is not just a room. It is a whole little world. Every tiny figurine has a story. Every stuffed animal has a place. Every random treasure means something. She gave me a full tour of who lives where, who does what, and why each little character belongs in its spot. That is Tatum.
And honestly, I love that about her. She wants a vanity with lights and shelves for her skincare, but she also still creates tiny worlds with little animals, cars, squishies, and stuffed friends. She is becoming older, but she has not lost that magical part of herself that sees stories everywhere.
My favorite part of the day was not even the finished vanity. Although Dad was doing GREAT!
It was sitting on the couch with her while Dad worked, our feet touching. That is one of Tatum’s love languages. Not always big hugs or dramatic affection. Sometimes just a foot touching mine.
By the end of the day, the vanity was built, the products were organized, the room looked beautiful, and Tatum had a new space that felt a little more grown up.
Cooper still did not understand why no one had thrown the pineapple enough times, but he survived. He now listened as Tatum gives us a tour of the contents/placement of the routine products.
It looks so nice now that we have put the pics back up.
It was such a good summer day. Room makeover, Dad building furniture…ALL DAY. (MY HHH is such a hero), Cooper delivering toys, Tatum spinning herself sick in her new chair, and me sitting there realizing again that these ordinary days are the ones I want to remember most.
