Happy Father's Day!

*Yes, it did pour rain during my graduation in AZ. And yes, I did look MUCH better before the rain.*

Tonight we took my dad out to dinner to celebrate Father's Day. While we were there my step-mom said that she wanted all of us kids (that were present, two weren't with us) to share our favorite memory of our dad growing up.

Uh oh. A lump of gigantic proportions started to form in my throat.

You see, I grew up nearly 700 miles away from my dad. We rarely spoke and when we did, I remember it being very difficult for me. What do you tell someone who you only see once a year and who you didn't know very well? I wanted so desperately to be close to him and to tell him all about my life, but I never could quite find the words. Maybe it was because I was nervous as to how he would react, but it was more than likely because I knew very little about him. What I did know was what my mother had told me, so it was very one sided (especially since they had gone through such a nasty divorce).

I always had a hard time growing up when everyone would talk about their dads and how great they were. They would all go to the "Daddy-Daughter" camp-outs and come back and rave about the amazing time they had with their dads. Talk about feeling like an outsider. I never once got to experience that and it broke my heart.

The older I got the closer I became with my dad. We started talking more often and I started opening up a lot more than I ever had. I realized that there were two sides to every story and that the person that I was told that he was, was the furthest from the truth it could have been.

When I was 18 and had graduated from high school I had a major falling out with my mom. I decided that I needed to get away. To start my life over. To turn a new leaf. However you want to put it, I needed it. So for the first time in my life I did what was best for me. I completely forgot about pleasing everyone else, and was determined to change my life and make myself happy.

I moved to Utah to live with my dad when I wasn't at school. Hands down, it is the BEST decision I have ever made. I love my dad more than almost anyone else in the world. He is knowledgeable in so many subjects, he can do or fix anything, he is full of love for me and the rest of my family, he will drop whatever he is doing to help anyone no matter what, he makes me laugh harder than anyone in the world, he is always willing to teach me about anything (football rules, how to cut crown molding, how the opposite-sex think, etc.). He is kind and compassionate and a wonderful example of the teachings of Christ.

So, yes. I don't have very many memories of my dad from when I was young. Yes, I will always be envious of my brothers and sister for getting to grow up with him and to get to spend everyday with him. To learn from him and to develop an incredible bond with him. However, I am grateful for every single moment that we have spent together in the last 2 years. For everything he has taught me, and for the woman he has helped me become. We have a lot of lost time to make up for, and I look forward to all of the years that we have ahead of us. For all the laughs and sincere moments that I will always hold in my heart.

I love you, Dad. Thanks for being you and for loving me.