Father's Day
So I thought I wrote the blog for my mom on Mother's Day. Nope, did it on her birthday. SO... as I just missed my dad's birthday and thought that I had more time to think about what I was going to write as his birthday was June 4th, here is the top ten list of the things I love most about my dad. In no particular order!
Number One: He loves people.
My dad has never met a stranger. We often tease about how he'd ask people the question "So, ah, where are you from?" in line. Any line - at Cedar Point, waiting at the airport, at the checkout at Walmart. Then after they tell him where they are from, he often says "Never heard of it!" I love that my dad loves people so much. He truly cares about them and is always looking to help make others' lives better. He genuinely is interested in what others have to say and has no trouble carrying on a conversation. Not because he just wants to talk. Though he is very good at that :) But because he loves hearing what others have to say. He always showed me that others matter and that life isn't all about ourselves. I learned to look outside myself and to help others and to be a source of encouragement to others when things are hard.
Number Two: He has a great laugh!
My dad loves to laugh. You know that he finds things really funny if he leans back, puts his hand to his chest and then puts his hand over his mouth while chuckling the entire time. You are really hysterical if he starts coughing and laughing at the same time!!!
Sometimes my dad laughs at you! Like when I tried to add air to my car's flat tire by attaching the bike pump and pushing it up and down with my foot. And then covering the tired with duct tape to hide the hole. He laughed hard at that one.
Or when I was moving one of the hoses to the other end of the pool because the pool would fill up faster if there was a hose at each end. He laughed hard at that one too.
Or when I used an outdoor brush to paint my closet white - inside! He laughed... oh wait. No he didn't laugh at that one. He was very mad that I used an indoor paintbrush and ruined it.
I always knew that even though he was laughing at me, he was really just getting a total kick out of what I was doing. I know that because I feel the same way about my kids.
Number Three: He is proud of my brothers and I.
Jon just got married. My dad could not have been more proud of where he has come from and who he is now and what an amazing wife he has. Jim is getting a job shift and moving to Georgia at the end of the month. My dad is so proud of him and has no doubt that he is going to be an amazing husband to some special girl one day. He gets worried about Jim sometimes and can be tough on him, but it's only because he wants the best for him. My dad was very tough on me about my grades in college and just about freaked out when I met a guy from Texas. But I know he's very proud of where I am and who I am. He truly has our best at heart - even when and especially when he has his strict face going on and is asking tons of questions and then giving us the answers. I know it's just his fear that we'll have to learn a lesson the hard way and he really does just want us to learn things the easy way the first time so that life will be easier. I love that he pushes us. I love that he demands excellence and effort and focus in all that we do. He makes us better people and he helps us to be the best in who we are and what we do.
Number Four: He is the hardest worker I know.
90 hour weeks. Six days a week. For many, many years. This was what my dad did to make sure our family could live. But this isn't the only way he works. My dad worked as a sales rep for many years following the early years and still worked incredibly hard while on the road. Even now, he still works hard. Working Saturdays just so the work doesn't back up. But even more so, this isn't really why he's a hard worker.
I think he's a hard worker because when he works, he is actually working. He doesn't waste time. He is able to focus on a task and plow through it - all while knowing exactly where is going, what he wants to accomplish and what the ends of the project looks like. It's a complete gift that many people don't have!
He pushes himself very hard. Sometimes too hard. He often finishes a job and then decides to start a new one as he's already sweaty and in clothes to work in. Usually a lawn job. He'll mow. Then decide the bushes need trimming. Then decide to help the neighbor and mow their yard. Then clean the gutters and jump in the pool at the end to relax.
My dad uses his 'free' time to make sure his pool is run perfectly and there is not one leaf in it! In fact, coming back home from Bermuda, he walked in the door and said "It's a mess!!" Looking around the house, it was totally spotless. Turns out he was talking about the leaves in the backyard. And I'm sure that they are all cleaned up after today!
I love that my dad taught me how to work effectively and how to finish projects and meet deadlines and keep a budget. I love that he sat down with me when I had my first checkbook and explained that I should not write a check unless I have money in the bank. I love that he pushed me not to take on debt and to pay my bills on-time. I was very fearful of mishandling money and knew that I had to be a good steward of what was entrusted to me. My dad felt a great responsibility in taking care of money that was hard-earned.
Number Five: He loves the Lord.
I love that my dad wants to be a godly man and serves Christ to the best of his ability. I love that he is moved in services and home groups and during family time. I love that he prays almost the same prayer at the end of all of his prayers. And that Riley does that when she prays "May this food nourish and strengthen us to will and to do of thy great pleasure - Amen." Only Riley slurs the nourish and strengthen us part :)
Number Six: He worries a lot because he really does just want everything to be perfect for his family.
We often give my dad a hard time about how much he worries. But down deep, we know it is just because he wants to make sure we are taken care of. And that he has used his resources to the best of his ability to provide the best. He looks years down the road and just wants that reassurance that the people he loves will be in really great places in their lives.
Number Seven: He is sensitive. In a very manly way!!
My dad has the most sensitive spirit. He cries at stories, songs, movies, you name it! I love that he cares so much about others and is touched by their lives. I love that he cries when God is working in his life and teaching him new things.
Number Eight: He has awesome quirks!
Because my dad worries a lot, he often says really great things like:
Don't park your car there. It gives three other cars a chance to hit you. Park it over in that far corner where the driver's side is against the curb and the front of the car goes into a curb. That way you only have one side of your car open for someone to hit you.
I parked the car down there away from the restaurant because if someone was going to hit me, they'd have to fly through that barrier on top over there to get me. - said when parking the car at a restaurant when I was in college where the restaurant was higher than the parking lot below. I'm serious.
I'm not going to tell you if there is a car there or not. If I wasn't here, you couldn't ask me. So you need to decided if you can get over a lane or not - said my FIRST time ever driving home. It was after church on Wednesday night in the dark and I cut off a semi-truck who was honking at me and we ended up having a huge argument about how I couldn't see the truck
Decelerate!! That doesn't mean to brake!!
Why are all the things I remember about cars???!! There are some other quirks that are just as awesome and I am at a loss at the moment to think of them. Will have to update this with more of them.
I love that my dad teases his brother and sisters and family members. That he purposefully would guess the wrong answers to Guesstures just to watch his mom get frustrated that he wasn't getting the right answer. I love that he knows exactly where everything in his toolbox should be and still blames my brothers if something is missing (what did Jim do with that wrench?).
Number Nine: We're exactly the same.
Growing up, people always said I looked like my dad. I can see that. I may imitate my mom in many of my gestures, but I think I resemble my dad quite a bit too. Though if you look at our personalities and our attitudes, we are very much the same!!
I get mad like he does (you're going to do what???!! No here's the way you should do it...") and I worry like he does. I can also get very sensitive towards others like he does. And cry at certain songs no matter how many times I hear them.
I love that even though I'm a lot like my mom, I'm also a lot like my dad. I can only hope that I encourage my kids and help them to be the best they can be like my dad did for me. I hope that I can instill a hard work ethic in them and help them to appreciate all that they have like my dad did for me.
Number Ten: He is Bahpah!
Bahpah is Julia's name for Grandpa. Our kids adore him. Every time he enters our house and asks for the girls "Where's Julia? Where's Riley?," the girls run around the corner. Riley usually runs into Grandma. Julia always runs straight to her Bahpah!! They give each other a big, big hug. It's incredibly precious to watch every single time. My dad loves his grand-daughters and smiles just thinking about them. What a blessing he is to our girls and will be to my brothers' kids one day!
Dad, you are amazing. You've always worked so hard for our family to give us an incredible life. And to be the best Dad you could be. I think you are the best Dad ever and I'm so thankful God chose you to be my Dad. I love you!!!!
Number One: He loves people.
My dad has never met a stranger. We often tease about how he'd ask people the question "So, ah, where are you from?" in line. Any line - at Cedar Point, waiting at the airport, at the checkout at Walmart. Then after they tell him where they are from, he often says "Never heard of it!" I love that my dad loves people so much. He truly cares about them and is always looking to help make others' lives better. He genuinely is interested in what others have to say and has no trouble carrying on a conversation. Not because he just wants to talk. Though he is very good at that :) But because he loves hearing what others have to say. He always showed me that others matter and that life isn't all about ourselves. I learned to look outside myself and to help others and to be a source of encouragement to others when things are hard.
Number Two: He has a great laugh!
My dad loves to laugh. You know that he finds things really funny if he leans back, puts his hand to his chest and then puts his hand over his mouth while chuckling the entire time. You are really hysterical if he starts coughing and laughing at the same time!!!
Sometimes my dad laughs at you! Like when I tried to add air to my car's flat tire by attaching the bike pump and pushing it up and down with my foot. And then covering the tired with duct tape to hide the hole. He laughed hard at that one.
Or when I was moving one of the hoses to the other end of the pool because the pool would fill up faster if there was a hose at each end. He laughed hard at that one too.
Or when I used an outdoor brush to paint my closet white - inside! He laughed... oh wait. No he didn't laugh at that one. He was very mad that I used an indoor paintbrush and ruined it.
I always knew that even though he was laughing at me, he was really just getting a total kick out of what I was doing. I know that because I feel the same way about my kids.
Number Three: He is proud of my brothers and I.
Jon just got married. My dad could not have been more proud of where he has come from and who he is now and what an amazing wife he has. Jim is getting a job shift and moving to Georgia at the end of the month. My dad is so proud of him and has no doubt that he is going to be an amazing husband to some special girl one day. He gets worried about Jim sometimes and can be tough on him, but it's only because he wants the best for him. My dad was very tough on me about my grades in college and just about freaked out when I met a guy from Texas. But I know he's very proud of where I am and who I am. He truly has our best at heart - even when and especially when he has his strict face going on and is asking tons of questions and then giving us the answers. I know it's just his fear that we'll have to learn a lesson the hard way and he really does just want us to learn things the easy way the first time so that life will be easier. I love that he pushes us. I love that he demands excellence and effort and focus in all that we do. He makes us better people and he helps us to be the best in who we are and what we do.
Number Four: He is the hardest worker I know.
90 hour weeks. Six days a week. For many, many years. This was what my dad did to make sure our family could live. But this isn't the only way he works. My dad worked as a sales rep for many years following the early years and still worked incredibly hard while on the road. Even now, he still works hard. Working Saturdays just so the work doesn't back up. But even more so, this isn't really why he's a hard worker.
I think he's a hard worker because when he works, he is actually working. He doesn't waste time. He is able to focus on a task and plow through it - all while knowing exactly where is going, what he wants to accomplish and what the ends of the project looks like. It's a complete gift that many people don't have!
He pushes himself very hard. Sometimes too hard. He often finishes a job and then decides to start a new one as he's already sweaty and in clothes to work in. Usually a lawn job. He'll mow. Then decide the bushes need trimming. Then decide to help the neighbor and mow their yard. Then clean the gutters and jump in the pool at the end to relax.
My dad uses his 'free' time to make sure his pool is run perfectly and there is not one leaf in it! In fact, coming back home from Bermuda, he walked in the door and said "It's a mess!!" Looking around the house, it was totally spotless. Turns out he was talking about the leaves in the backyard. And I'm sure that they are all cleaned up after today!
I love that my dad taught me how to work effectively and how to finish projects and meet deadlines and keep a budget. I love that he sat down with me when I had my first checkbook and explained that I should not write a check unless I have money in the bank. I love that he pushed me not to take on debt and to pay my bills on-time. I was very fearful of mishandling money and knew that I had to be a good steward of what was entrusted to me. My dad felt a great responsibility in taking care of money that was hard-earned.
Number Five: He loves the Lord.
I love that my dad wants to be a godly man and serves Christ to the best of his ability. I love that he is moved in services and home groups and during family time. I love that he prays almost the same prayer at the end of all of his prayers. And that Riley does that when she prays "May this food nourish and strengthen us to will and to do of thy great pleasure - Amen." Only Riley slurs the nourish and strengthen us part :)
Number Six: He worries a lot because he really does just want everything to be perfect for his family.
We often give my dad a hard time about how much he worries. But down deep, we know it is just because he wants to make sure we are taken care of. And that he has used his resources to the best of his ability to provide the best. He looks years down the road and just wants that reassurance that the people he loves will be in really great places in their lives.
Number Seven: He is sensitive. In a very manly way!!
My dad has the most sensitive spirit. He cries at stories, songs, movies, you name it! I love that he cares so much about others and is touched by their lives. I love that he cries when God is working in his life and teaching him new things.
Number Eight: He has awesome quirks!
Because my dad worries a lot, he often says really great things like:
Don't park your car there. It gives three other cars a chance to hit you. Park it over in that far corner where the driver's side is against the curb and the front of the car goes into a curb. That way you only have one side of your car open for someone to hit you.
I parked the car down there away from the restaurant because if someone was going to hit me, they'd have to fly through that barrier on top over there to get me. - said when parking the car at a restaurant when I was in college where the restaurant was higher than the parking lot below. I'm serious.
I'm not going to tell you if there is a car there or not. If I wasn't here, you couldn't ask me. So you need to decided if you can get over a lane or not - said my FIRST time ever driving home. It was after church on Wednesday night in the dark and I cut off a semi-truck who was honking at me and we ended up having a huge argument about how I couldn't see the truck
Decelerate!! That doesn't mean to brake!!
Why are all the things I remember about cars???!! There are some other quirks that are just as awesome and I am at a loss at the moment to think of them. Will have to update this with more of them.
I love that my dad teases his brother and sisters and family members. That he purposefully would guess the wrong answers to Guesstures just to watch his mom get frustrated that he wasn't getting the right answer. I love that he knows exactly where everything in his toolbox should be and still blames my brothers if something is missing (what did Jim do with that wrench?).
Number Nine: We're exactly the same.
Growing up, people always said I looked like my dad. I can see that. I may imitate my mom in many of my gestures, but I think I resemble my dad quite a bit too. Though if you look at our personalities and our attitudes, we are very much the same!!
I get mad like he does (you're going to do what???!! No here's the way you should do it...") and I worry like he does. I can also get very sensitive towards others like he does. And cry at certain songs no matter how many times I hear them.
I love that even though I'm a lot like my mom, I'm also a lot like my dad. I can only hope that I encourage my kids and help them to be the best they can be like my dad did for me. I hope that I can instill a hard work ethic in them and help them to appreciate all that they have like my dad did for me.
Number Ten: He is Bahpah!
Bahpah is Julia's name for Grandpa. Our kids adore him. Every time he enters our house and asks for the girls "Where's Julia? Where's Riley?," the girls run around the corner. Riley usually runs into Grandma. Julia always runs straight to her Bahpah!! They give each other a big, big hug. It's incredibly precious to watch every single time. My dad loves his grand-daughters and smiles just thinking about them. What a blessing he is to our girls and will be to my brothers' kids one day!
Dad, you are amazing. You've always worked so hard for our family to give us an incredible life. And to be the best Dad you could be. I think you are the best Dad ever and I'm so thankful God chose you to be my Dad. I love you!!!!
Comments
Post a Comment