Petunias are the prettiest

I bet you've been wondering where the title for my blog originated. You know you have...Don't be ashamed to admit it. :)

When I was little, my great uncle, who's name has always just been Uncle to me, nicknamed me Petunia. Well, after he had initially nicknamed me Peaches, but my father decided his precious brand new infant daughter didn't need to sound like a stripper. So Petunia it was.

I spent quite a bit of time at Bill (my aunt...Mary Bill) and Uncle's house as a child...see my sister is just 14 months younger than me, and my brother is 4 years older. So my mom had a newborn, a very precocious 1 yr old, and a ridiculously hyper 5 yr old. And my dad worked ALOT. Not surprisingly, she couldn't always deal...Lord, I have one child and couldn't deal. My aunt & uncle lived down the street from us, and their daughter was my godmother...so naturally I spent plenty of time there. My first sleepover was there, my first time swimming (I was two...and couldn't technically swim yet) was there...my first real birthday party, etc. I loved that house...and them. They were then, and still are, more like grandparents than extended family.

So, back to the point...he nicknamed me Petunia. It got shortened over the years to Tunia, Tunie and even Tunie Lu. People still call me by that nickname to this day~ it's like the gift that just keeps giving. When I was young, I used to ask Uncle why he called me Petunia (he never shortened it) and his response was always, "Because Petunias are the prettiest". So there you have it. Petunias are the prettiest. I would walk in the door and would always hear, before I had even walked around the corner to be seen, "There's my pretty Petunia", and I would always smile. I still do.