Manda Monday--The Auction

My garden dreams are finally coming true because of the one person in our house who couldn't care less about gardening.  No, not Barley, but The Big Guy.  Even though gardening is not his thing, he understood that I have to plant a garden this summer or my heart would explode.  And that's why he outbid a certified millionaire to get my dream garden started. 

Let me back up:  Those of you who have been here for a while know that I am a fundraiser.  This profession includes creating, planning and coordinating formal and fun events.  In April, my organization held an awesome "Under the Big Top" fundraiser that included a live and silent auction, with over 200 prizes to be won. 

One of the live auction items included a shade tree and installation, a rain barrel, and 10 members of the school's football team to do yard work for three hours.  Obviously, I had my eye on that prize ever since the items were donated and paired together.  And The Big Guy knew this.  "Oh, what I could get done with a 10-man crew for three hours!" I'm sure I said that at least once a day in the weeks leading up to the event.

So at the event, I'm working and The Big Guy is along for the ride, alternately helping out when needed and having fun when possible.  The silent auction comes and goes, and The Big Guy is outbid on every single item he went for.  Then, it's time for the live auction.  I'm on the main stage floor with the auctioneer on the elevated stage behind me, keeping track of all bids and the winners.  We come to the "Deluxe Gardening Package."  There are several bidders at first. As the price climbs, bidder after bidder begins dropping out until there are only two people left.  One, of to my left, is The Big Guy.  And the other bidder, directly in front of me, is a Very Wealthy Philanthropist. 

Now keep in mind that at the TMI Household, we do not have deep pockets. Some weeks, it feels like the only thing in our pockets is lint.  Very Wealthy Philanthropist obviously has deep pockets.  And it became quite apparent that he wanted to win this auction prize as much as The Big Guy did. 

The bidding went back and forth several times between these two, while I was positioned front and center to the audience.  As soon as I realized who The Big Guy was bidding against, I almost passed out.  I knew we couldn't afford to go as high as Very Wealthy Philanthropist could, and I also knew that The Big Guy was not going to give up on this package.  Right at the time I shot The Big Guy my best "STOP BIDDING RIGHT THIS INSTANT BECAUSE WE CAN'T GO ANY HIGHER" look (while trying to keep my composure in front of 350 people), a miracle happened.  Very Wealthy Philanthropist stopped bidding, and The Big Guy was the clear winner. 

And that's the exact moment when the garden of my dreams stopped being a dream, and started becoming reality...all because The Big Guy stuck to his guns.

Here's the rain barrel, donated to the auction by the Conservation Foundation:

Tomorrow, I'll share the shade tree installation with you, followed by a detailed account of what happened before and during the epic morning of yard work with the football team.  The transformation that has taken place in my front and back yards is totally and completely awesome. 

Thanks, Big Guy.  xoxo