Dad

Spring is here and I am so happy!  I seem to have so much more energy when it is warm outside and the days are longer.  We went to my dad's house for my Grandma's 83rd birthday last weekend and I was reminded again how much I enjoy my family.  I have two sisters adopted from China who are 8 and 12 and I love hanging out with them.  I can't wait until Henry can hang out there with the chickens and the bunnies and swim...what a blessing.  My dad is different now then he was when we were young.  Not completely but different.  It seems that with age you figure out what is important, what battles to choose and which ones to fight.  I am so proud of him for the dad he was to me when I was young, but I love to watch the changes and the growth from then to now.  And I love love love it that the Lord planted my two sweet sisters in my family before Henry was a glimmer in our eyes.  Isn't it fun to step back from your life and admire God's workmanship?  How everything is woven together and blends so beautifully?  I wonder why we doubt the future...even as we face trials and unknowns...shouldn't we be excited about what they will look like in five years? 

Dad and his kids

I watched my wedding video last night and sat in wonder at where the time went.  Wasn't it just yesterday that I had Ben?  Could it have been 22 years ago that I married the man of my dreams?  And even more amazing is the transformation in me.  It seems like yesterday that my dad and I were struggling to find the light of day...we were both disasters willing ourselves to make life work.  I talk about my mom a lot and what I learned from her, when I think about my dad I think I learned sheer, raw determination.  There is nothing my dad is afraid of and when he sets his mind, there is very few things that will stop him.  He has always been my hero, not because he's perfect....hahahah...he's far from that....but because he is a good man.  He taught me what a good man is and that even though they are rare, they exist.  He might be rough around the edges...may not always say the right thing...and rarely will he say it delicately, but he is good, and that is more important.  So here's to the last 28 years, Dad...because of God, honesty and that raw determination we both came out ok.