Dad, Daddy, Pappy, Padre

I know this is a few days late but Father's Day is something that just can't be skipped over. I feel badly that I couldn't be home for Father's Day and give Dad a back rub (which he will fall asleep instantly to) but I decided I'd let him know how much I love and appreciate him through writing and hopefully he will read this.

He still looks this handsome.

My dad is the smartest man alive. Hands down. I'm sure as he's reading this, he will be going through all my grammatical errors and will let me know once he finds them. He knows how to do everything and how to fix everything. He's also full of it.... good advise, that is.

Dad took the time while we were growing up to teach us every day, even small things like how rocket engines work to get the ship off the ground. He taught us the importance of hard work and putting "first things first". Even when we were snot-nosed kids, he didn't brush us off and do his man stuff, he included us in the projects he was working on and helped us develop interests at a young age.

Some of the fun memories I have of my father are when he and I worked on putting the engine together in my red Camaro. He loves cars and is a wiz in the garage! He would explain all the different parts and how and why they go together in terms that I can understand. Another memory I have was our road trip to Colorado to see my cousin's graduation. It was just him and I for quite a few hours and I never got bored. We had many deep discussions and had fun finishing off water bottles, looking at each other, and them tossing them over our shoulders into the back seat. We also stopped a few times to look at old ruins in Wyoming.

My dad also did/does something that is very important. He let's us know how much he loves our mother by word and action, and that has made a huge difference in our family. We see how he loves her and treats her like a queen and does all her manual labor tasks and projects. It is also an example to us about how we should treat our future spouses.

Picking mom up from the airport.

My dad is a great family man. He recently became a grandpa as well and he is so doting and attached to little Claire. He's become one of those grandparents that shows pictures of their grand-babies to complete strangers because he's so proud of her. 

My dad is also so funny. Even though we give him endless flack for some of his more ridiculous jokes, I accredit all my humor (hopefully you think I'm funny) to my dad. He likes to think outside of the box and I never get tired of his witty little quips and antics. 

His response (right) to my warning sign. 

Dad is my hero is every way and I want to be just like him (with less hairy legs) when I grow up and I want to marry someone like him as well. He's been the greatest example and help in my life and I just wanted to let him know that I love him. 

Happy Father's Day, Dad. <3