Spotlight of the Month: My Papa!

Fathers are so influential in the lives of their children. I used to be annoyed at the fact that Father's Day immediately proceeded Mother's Day - as if it were an afterthought or something. After all, fathers need mega attention too! I actually discovered the history of Father's day (read it here) and my annoyance changed to gratitude for the daughter that started the whole movement.

I have such a soft spot in my heart for great dads! I think they're so dang awesome! It's true that anyone can be a father, but it takes someone special to be called dad. So to honor my own dad on this upcoming holiday, I've decided to list a few of my favorite memories (random - as always) of this interesting character. Enjoy Dad!

What a Generous Guy!

I remember back in high school being so desperate to move away to college (I'm very independent, what can I say). I knew the only way I was going to do that was through a full ride scholarship. The only way I was going to earn that full ride from the university of my choice was by getting a great score on my ACT exam. I took a few practice tests and my math score wasn't up to scholarship material. I discovered Sylvan Learning Center had an ACT prep course with an emphasis on ACT math. It cost a ton of money. I asked my dad to pay for it and he said no. I cried and cried in his office after he left - my whole life was over for heaven's sake! He must have heard my breakdown because he totally caved. I rocked the ACT and earned the scholarship. The ironic part was that I ended up becoming a math teacher. Go figure.

My dad has a history of giving. Like I said, he's a generous guy. There have been so many instances in my married life (especially during medical school) where he has sent us a check or offered to pay for this or that - just to help us out. And it usually came (comes) at the perfect time.

If you keep up with my blog, you probably read about the time I caused a huge accident in Arizona. He drove the long 11 hour drive just so he could haul our piece of junk college car on a dollie all the way to Utah the next day. The hilarious thing about that story is that 2 years later, he hauled that same piece of junk college car across the entire country when we moved away to Pennsylvania. He did that so that I could avoid the dreadful move with 2 small kids. The car wasn't even worth the cost of gas to drive it out!

Which leads me to the next generous thing: he has helped his kids move a bazillion times! Well, almost. There's some truth to that actually - I mean he has 7 kids and we've all moved our fair share so it adds up. When we moved away to Arizona for med school, he drove our little Uhaul so that Joel and I could drive with our little baby, JD. It was the longest trip ever! We had to stop every 4 hours so that I could nurse JD. He would just read - his favorite thing to do while waiting. He was going to help Joel move across the country to Pennsylvania, but his mom (my grandma) passed away so he felt bad about not being able to help Joel. That was why he hauled our crappy car across the entire country to PA.

What a Fun Memory Maker!

By memory maker, I mean initiating and financing awesome vacations of course! One of my favorite things in the whole world is traveling. I feel so lucky to have visited so many intersting and unique places around the world, thanks to my pa. My dad traveled a lot with his occupation; therefore, he racked up a ton of frequent flyer miles. So even though he sacrificed and was gone with work, it all worked out when he cashed 'em in come summertime! He'd get antsy come wintertime and start planning our next big summer vacation. It was always so exciting to hear the year's new destination: England, New Zealand, Raratonga, Tahiti, Mexico, Florida etc.

Once the kids were gone, he switched gears and decided to try his luck at motorhoming. Joel and I went on some way fun (with hilarious memories to boot) trips with my mom and dad in their motorhomes (yep, he went through 2 of them!). Two trips take the cake: the trip through Canada (and getting stuck in the middle of busy Vancouver - with a ginormous rig!), and our cross-country tour of all the church sites (I'm amazed we're all alive after that one!). Good times!

One year he braved 4 hormonal teenaged girls in the open waters of Lake Powell. It was my birthday and he let me celebrate it in Lake Powell. It was so cool. We camped on the lake in our boat, but went ashore for my birthday dinner in the local hotel. I remember getting what I thought was a way cool tank top/shorts outfit from the gift shop. I think I still have that tank top - that was almost 20 years ago! I also remember (this is for you Teresa) my good friends convincing me to can-nap all of my dad's rat nasty Vienna Sausage containers and hide them so he wouldn't put them in our food. I wonder if he ever found those when he cleaned up??

Here are some random photos of the recent trips we've gone on with my mom and dad. I love looking at old pictures - it reminds me how lucky I am to have great memories with my dad. Unfortunately, most of our vacation pictures were taken before the age of digital photography, but here are just a few random shots.

What an Incredible Grandpa!

If ever there was a man that was born to be a grandpa, it's my dad. He's an awesome grandpa! He loves his grandkids - especially the little ones. My kids get so excited to see their grandpa - he can be so cute with them. He sings them funny little songs and teases them all the time. They love to ride in his truck when we travel and sit on his lap for story time. He reads them books, but it's always interesting to hear the strange stories he makes up too! He'd better stick around for years to come because my kids definitely need their grandpa! That means after you're done reading this dad, you have to walk on your treadmill for at least 30 minutes! And no more soda!

My dad has helped shape my character...

My dad instilled in me a respect for education at an early age. I remember watching him read book after book in our living room. He was always lecturing us to get a college degree - especially as a woman. He didn't have much patience for dingbat women. I remember he helped me install my washer and dryer that I sold to this single mom many years ago. Something happened and the water line sprung a leak. She was laughing and had no idea where her main water shut off valve was. I got a lecture afterwards from a very annoyed father about how a woman should know those kinds of things. I felt dumb because I didn't know where mine was. I figured it out when I got home. Only from a dad - it's just not acceptable to be stupid!


Along the same lines, he made me pass his "test" before I could get my driver's license. I had to demonstrate to him that I knew how to change a tire and other basic things about car maintenance. I feel pretty secure in knowing how to take care of myself and my family if anything were to happen to Joel. My dad played a big part in shaping that part of me.

One of the most important things my dad has instilled in me is the importance of family. Family is number one in his life. Family comes first. Period.

Man, I'm writing a freak'n novel here - I didn't know I had so much to say! Anyway, I certainly can't leave out one more important thing that my dad tried to instill in all of his kids: patriotism. He served his country for many years and I totally respect that. I remember thinking it was really cool to do the whole flag ceremony thing during family reunions. I gained a great deal of respect for the sacrifice of our soldiers during war. He was the one calling troops away to war and I could see that it was difficult for him to watch families getting separated. Joel and I love talking politics with him too - he has a wealth of knowledge to draw upon.

So for all the reasons above and many more, I'm grateful for my dad.
I've always known that he loves me and is proud of me.
That's pretty great.

Happy Father's Day! I love you!