Part I - To My Dad:
My earliest memories include me laying across my dad's chest with my head tucked just under his stubbly chin as we watched Sesame Street, or anything involving our beloved muppets. I still remember the way his face felt like worn sandpaper against mine, it was rough but it tickled and made me and my little brother giggle when snuggling up to him. He invented so many make-believe games for us to play, and created innovative ways to teach us lessons along the way. Here are just a couple of my favorites:
1.) The "Who Woke Me Up" Game - my dad would lay on the floor, instruct us repeatedly not to wake him up, and then pretend to fall sound asleep (fake snoring and all). We, of course, would not waste a second in trying to "wake" him up, and he would respond with a boisterous "WHOOOOOO WOKE MEEEE UP?!" roar. My brother and I would simultaneously point at each other and giggle, and then the three of us would laugh and laugh and the cycle would begin again. Today, Caden "wakes" PaPa up all the time, and it's even more fun for me to watch my son and and my father bond than it was to participate in the silliness as a child.
2.) The "Original" Lie Detector - if my dad thought my brother or I may be "fibbing" about something, he would ask us to give him one of our arms (which we would begrudgingly do), then he would sternly ask, "did you draw on the wall in the kitchen?" (Or whatever crime we were suspected of at the time). As he was staring us sharply in the eye, he would pretend (very dramatically) to feel a large lump rise up in whatever wrist he was holding, and with an outburst of guilt and regret, we'd shout "Ok! Yes, it was me... But I didn't mean to..." (What every guilty kid ends their confession with) My dad would then name our sentence. After awhile, he had us SO convinced that he could detect ANY lie that we would confess our wrongdoings BEFORE he was even finished asking the question! As an adult, married with two children, I STILL cringe when my dad jokingly asks "to feel my wrist," and I STILL feel like I need to confess my guilt, even when I've done nothing wrong! Personally speaking, I cannot wait to try this timeless technique on my boys.
Growing up, my dad was the first man I loved, the first guy who kissed me goodnight, the man who I couldn't wait to get a big "bear hug" from when I got home from school, and my very first hero. As a young adult, he became my trusted advisor, my career counselor and one of my best friends. Today, he remains the person I turn to when I need someone to make me make sense of a chaos or to help me weigh all of my options. He's all of these wonderful things to me, but much more than all of that, he's the greatest "PaPa" to my boys, and watching history repeat and reinvent itself in front of me is one of the greatest treasures I've ever known. Happy Father's Day, Daddio. I love you so much.
Part II - To My Husband & Father of My Children
I think about how important and influential my dad remains to me, and I know without a doubt that Phil plays that same role for our boys. I see the way Caden looks up at him with his big, brown doe-like eyes, just happy to be in his presence. I hear the sweet way Cooper giggles at him as they exchange silly faces from across the room. They say "imitation is the best form of flattery" and that must be true, because Caden wants to do EVERYTHING like his "Da-da" does (from mowing the grass with his little mower, hammering away at a "project," or simply trying to out on Phil's shoes and shirt). Caden idolizes his dad, and there is not a better man out there for him to model himself after.
I never knew how much I could love Phil until I saw him with each of our boys, and then with both of them together. I remember when we talked to the priest (before getting married) about our hopes and plans for having kids one day, and I tried at that moment to picture him as a father. I couldn't really do it, because I couldn't picture myself as a mother at that time. It felt so foreign and distant. We were still children being guided in a way.
Now, I look at Phil with one boy tucked under each capable arm, and I couldn't picture him any other way. He is a natural at it. Fatherhood has brought out the very best in him, and has made me love him more than I ever thought possible. I likely don't tell him that enough either. I hope he knows that I think it everyday, several times a day...
As I turn up the monitor in Caden's room to quietly listen in on his nightly routine, I can hear Phil lovingly reading all of his favorite books (which I know he has memorized by now), and my heart swells with pride. I watch as he showers each little man with kisses and hugs each morning, and sometimes I get teary eyed (in the best way possible). There is absolutely nothing in this world that could make me respect or love my husband more than seeing him become our boys' first hero right before my eyes. There is nothing more amazing than witnessing that. I am so proud of you, Phil. You are our rock, forever and always. Here's to our family now and to the future as it grows... Happy Father's Day, everyday to you... I love you. We love you.
:-D
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