Happy Father's Day!

As an update on my sister, she is doing much better but is loopy on the drugs they have her on. So it makes it difficult to watch a newborn (+ 3 yr. old) but my parents and her in-laws are helping out. The allergenist is 90% sure that she had an allergic reaction to a drug she was taking for mastitis. The hives/itching/swelling could last up to 8 weeks but hopefully she has already seen the worst of it. Thank you all for your prayers!

To commemorate Father's Day, I wanted to tell you a little about my own father. I guess you can consider this a belated "Flashback Friday" since it will include memories from my childhood.

I really think my father is one of those special kind-of dads. I've decided to give you a list of 10 (of many) reasons why I think he is so special.

1. My dad was always involved in church and made every effort with my mom to get us there every Sunday. I remember his low, loud singing voice in church. He would always help my mom fold church newsletters and he mowed the church lawn with my brothers, too. I always thought it was so neat when my dad would get in front of the whole congregation to do a mini-sermon and his message usually involved his love for his 4 kids.

2. My dad was always such a huge support to my mom. Not only in church but also in other things like Girl Scouts. My mom was the troop leader (the best!!) and he was always helping with craft ideas, fundraisers, trips, etc. I remember him dressing up like a Girl Scout and visiting a co-worker to sell cookies. My sister and I always had top cookie sales needless to say!

3. My dad always found time to play with us. When we got older, he spent a lot of time in the batting cages and in the outfield of the baseball fields where he hit fly balls to us. He always coached a team in every league we were in and even continued to coach teams when his kids were too old to play. Both of my parents now run the city ballpark program and I think they do it because it reminds them of us. We also made many visits to Busch Stadium to see the Cards. We all grew up as big fans!

4. My dad was our biggest cheerleader. He was at every softball, baseball, volleyball, and basketball game. He even did cheers with our friends and they thought he was funny jumping around. He knew all of the words to the cheers, too.

5. My dad is super smart! I'd like to think that I have some of my dad's intelligence. He'd always help me with my advanced math homework. There was never something he couldn't figure out. He was a good proofreader, too. Between him and my mom who is super creative, we always won art and writing contests in school. I'd also like to think that I got some of my dad's rhythm. He is such a good dancer and we'd always listen to the Oldies together.

6. My dad would dress up as Santa, Woodsy the Owl, Smokey the Bear, etc. for the sake of his kids and their friends. He even dressed up as a Top Hat (picture a huge hat over his head and a face painted on his belly) and danced in our school's talent shows with a couple other dads. It became a popular act!

7. My dad is a strong example of great moral character. He always pushed us to make the right decisions whether they were the easy ones or not. And he practiced what he preached, too. We were always a witness to good decisions on his part.

8. Not only did my dad quit some bad habits cold turkey when his doctor told him to get healthy... he took it to the extreme and started to run marathons! What a great example of strength and perseverance! And he did it for his family!

9. No matter what we lived without, my dad ALWAYS saved money for great vacations in the summer. We got to stay in fancy condo's and go to places like Sea World, Busch Gardens, Gulf Port, Biloxi Beach, Six Flags, Opryland, etc. And of course he was out on the beach or in the pool with us kids throwing us in flips or playing with the frisbee. I have such great memories of those family vacations.

10. My dad loves my mom so much! It's so sweet how he always wants to be with her. He is such a great companion to her! He also loves his family so much. He is just so smitten with all of his grandkids!

Thank you so much for being the best dad! You did so much for us and even though we may not have realized it at the time, your kids definitely realize now how truly special you are! We love you and Happy Father's Day!

Sidenote: My dad was diagnosed about 3 1/2 years ago with a devastating type of non-Hodgkins lymphoma. We have been blessed with good news on every quarterly visit with his specialist including his visit last week. (*Knock on wood!*) Please continue to keep him in your prayers!