Half a Century Young!

I know I should be writing about all the exciting happenings of last week, but they can come later. Today I am writing about my Dad. Today my dear ole Daddy turns 50 years old! I'm sad that I'm not there to throw him a black balloon party and sing to him at the top of my lungs and shower him with hugs and kisses. Instead I've decided to write some of my best memories of

my favorite "old man". He He!

I've always been a daddy's girl. Even when I was little I always loved my dad. I always wanted to sit with him and loved learning new things from him. I remember being so sad when he would go away for TDYs for months at a time, but then being so excited when he would come back! He frequently brought back treats or trinkets. In fact, I have a shadow box full of little things from all over thanks to my dad.

I remember sitting and listening to him tell us wonderful stories! He's a historian in the making, and my siblings and I grew up listening to fantastic stories about wars, hero's, pioneers, and great adventures my dad had himself. As I've grown older I realized that most kids didn't know half the stuff I did about World War II. I also realized that though I had listened intently to all of my daddy's stories, I frequently did not pay attention to all the facts and sometimes wasn't sure if I was related to the person in the fabulous story or if it was about someone else my dad had read about. Some of Dad's stories have changed over the years, but that's okay. I still to this day love to listen to my dad tell us tales (tall and short) of adventures from the past. In fact, every year since I can remember on my birthday my daddy has told me the story about the night I was born. My dad has a way of always knowing how to make you smile... if he wants to anyway. He also knows how to make you blazing angry or frown. In fact, some of my memories of my dad include him making me blazing spit fire mad, and then coming into my room afterwards to smile and poke at me and make me laugh until I can't even remember what I was so mad about! My brother and I were talking the other day about how every year on Robert's birthday in high school he always seemed to be having a bad day, but Dad would come home in his BDU's and rock out singing "I HEAR IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY! IT'S MY BIRTHDAY TOO! I HEAR IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!" complete with air guitar and all. Fabulous! I have great memories of dancing in the living room with my dad as a kid. As much as he may not admit it, he's pretty good on his toes and has a nice sense of rhythm. He also can carry a tune better than most people I know. He knows how to make almost any situation fun and has a wonderful deep laugh. He has so much drive and focus and personality! In fact, I remember in high school when I realized that a lot of my guy friends were actually taller than my dad... but they sure didn't seem like it! Dad has so much presence and personality that he always stands out in a crowd.

He's a supporter in every sense of the word! My dad has been there cheering me on and supporting me at every major cross road in my life. I know he loves me and always has... even when I was a typical teenager and maybe wasn't so lovable. I cried when I danced with my dad at my wedding reception. I cry every time I have to say goodbye. He may not be perfect, but I'll always love him just the same because he's my dad!

Happy 50th Birthday, Daddy! I love you!