My Dad

This Father's Day I would like to write about my Dad. He is, of course, one of my very favorite people in the world....and not just because he is my most avid blog-reader. But because he has been my favorite teacher. No...not for calculus (for that he was my saving grace, but always too smart for me! "See here...you can check your answer by setting up a simple matrix." Uhhh...matrix?) No my dad's teachings always came through his "true stories" (That a true story Dad? "Well if it ain't true, it out to be!" he'd say!) He really is the best story teller. And all of his stories have a "moral to the story." Some life lesson better learned by listening to the (often) fatal experiences of "Fredricka and Guggenheimer" than actually committing the same mistake for real. My Dad continues to teach me through his example too. He is a man who truly loves his family. He sacrifices for them. In fact, it was just this year that he (FINALLY) got his Harley. He's been dreaming over that Harley Davidson Soft-tail Springer Motorcycle my entire life and way before my birth! I had braces on my teeth before he got his Harley. My brothers served missions before he got his Harley. My Mom made trips out to Virginia to help when I had my babies...before he got his Harley. I'll never forgot the time he had business work out in Maryland....he drove hours in his rental car through the traffic and into the night to get to us in Virginia....he came to see our new little baby TJ. His 3rd grandson. That's how I know he's getting soft in his older years! He just couldn't stand to be one state away and not come visit, even if it was for just one day! He has a way of always making me feel important....loved. I'll always remember the last thing he said to me while living under his roof....before I left the house for BYU. He said, "Don't let your studies interfere with your education!" He knows me so well....he knew I might get so caught up with school work that I might miss out on all the fun coming-of-age stuff! It was because of this comment (allowance?) that I felt fine passing up some studying to go out on dates. I may, in fact, owe my courtship/engagement/marriage to this bit of fatherly counsel! Thank you Dad! You're awesome!

Here is my Dad....teaching Carson the joys of dirt-biking on the mesa in New Mexico:


And here he is holding TJ....just a couple weeks old! What a good-looking Grandpa!