It appears that I’ve started “gifting” through my blog. As in, I’m so sorry that I couldn’t get you an awesome present for said holiday, BUT I dedicated a post to you on my blog. It seemed to work great for Mother’s Day so I thought I’d give it another whirl and dedicate this post to my Dad. And it’s not even very, very belated. I always wanted to use my writing for something…

Anyways, we got to host my parents over Father’s Day weekend so I got to spend a lot of quality time with my Dad. We had a blast and I was reminded why he is so awesome.

1) He introduced me to PBR when I was in college.
2) He is a great cook. I don’t know who else would think to put mayonnaise and breadcrumbs on fish and bake it, but he does it and it is YUMMY.
3) He has a contagious sense of adventure and fun. Hanging out with him is always entertaining and if you are lucky he’ll even serenade you. His adventuring led  us to Go Kart racing and river floating over Father’s Day weekend. In the past we’ve gone to concerts, skiing, boating, drinking, vacationing, etc.
4) But he is still happiest at home with my Mom. They have built a beautiful house and they love nothing more than to entertain and hang out at home. So my tendency towards homebodiness as I get older can be directly attributed to them. Thanks.
5) He is talented. If you didn’t catch it, he designed and built our family house and it’s pretty rad. I’ve done a few tours through there since graduating from college. I’m not sure if that was quite his intention, but there are frequent long-term guests at the Dew Drop Inn.
6) His inspirational, passionate speeches. When he is really attempting to get a point across he grabs the nearest object and uses it as a prop to gesticulate with as expounds on his point. In the end, I can’t help but laugh no matter how serious the situation.
7) He’s laid-back. When I was in high school and didn’t make curfew or one of my small house parties turned into hosting the whole high school, he always went to bat with my mom to bail me out.
8) He’s resourceful. Like MacGuyver, but better. I remember the time us kids wanted to launch a rocket and it wasn’t working. Dad rigged it up while three very anxious and annoying children peered over his shoulder. Way more pressure than MacGuyver’s adventures. The rocket may or may not have exploded mid-launch and caught a field on fire, but no one was harmed. And my mom never left us home alone with him again so it might have worked out in his favor.

So cheers to you Dad! Thanks for all the life lessons and most importantly for teaching me how to drink beer, and continuing to attempt to teach me not to stress the small stuff. Or the big stuff. Or any stuff really. Maybe I’ll get the hang of it one day. Until then there’s always PBR.