70....

That's how old my Dad would have been today. Hard for me to believe or even imagine. Dad passed away at the young age of 52. He had esophagean cancer and it took him pretty quickly. Today I'll dedicate my weekly 4 to my Dad with 4 memories of him! Hopefully I can find pictures of these things and update this post with them real soon!

1) I remember dancing with my Dad on my wedding day. Mom was not happy with him because he wouldn't take off his "Irish" baseball cap and sunglasses. I thought they looked nice with his tux and was so pleased that he chose to wait to put them on at the reception, rather than at the wedding ceremony. As we finished dancing and he was walking away I saw him take off his glasses and wipe away tears...he really was a softie!

2) I remember how much my Dad loved being outdoors. He loved to ginseng hunt (and usually paid for Christmas that way!), he loved to hunt deer, rabbits, squirrels and the occasional turtle (and fed us that way!), he loved to cut down the biggest tree he could find at the bottom of the steepest hill he could find (and let me carry it up the hill so Lance and Chris could split it! LOL), he loved to do just about anything outside.

3) I remember him being silly. Most of the time he was a very serious and stern person, but he did like to cut up once in a while! He had funny songs he would sing in the car (George Jones and Roger Miller songs, especially), he liked to play practical jokes, he loved to do anything to make little kids laugh! He enjoyed torturing us by owning ugly cars and trucks!!!!!!!

4) I remember him always doing the best he could! We didn't always agree with everything he said or did, but we ALWAYS respected him (even if it sometimes took a few years! LOL). He was always willing to offer his advice or opinion, whether you wanted it or not! He taught us to work hard, play hard, and always do our best. He taught us about respect, faith, honesty and love.

I can't believe he's already been gone 16 years. It really doesn't seem possible. I still miss him every day and wish I could just talk to him.

Hugs&Smiles!
Kim