on fathers day

there is so so much i have saved up to write about....prom, senior night, graduation....the list goes on.  but while i've been LIVING it, i havent really had time to reflect or write about any of it.  i hope to get back to that in the near future.   but as it goes with me these days, an occasion pops up that i feel compelled to write about at the time.  you would have thought it would be graduation.  but no.  i guess i'm trying to NOT think so hard about that!!

today is for the dad's out there.  who are doing their jobs, helping to take care of their families.  and generally being overall awesome guys.  we couldnt do it without them.  or if we could, it wouldnt be nearly so great.  that's not to say i dont appreciate what single parents go thru.  i cant imagine trying to do the work of 2 people all the time.  but i also dont think the dads that stick get nearly enough credit.  its not easy.  none of it is.  just like all the amazing moms out there, these dads are working, running, juggling and most times being nagged within an inch of their life while doing it.

He didn't tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it.  

~Clarence Budington Kelland    

i have been blessed in my life to have the most amazing father in the whole wide world.  whether my mom agrees on anything else or not, there is no arguing that.  he worked hard, he spent time with me.  he came to every single thing i ever did....and still does.  if you live anywhere near good old chuck county, then you know my Pop.  hes the absolute greatest. and not just because he was there everyday.  but because he took the time to show us what it meant to work hard and earn the things you wanted.  he taught us that hard work,
while important, wasnt everything.  he encouraged us to play, and compete.  and he was there to discipline us when we messed up.  which clearly isnt the fun part of the job.  but he did it.  i'm super glad to say my dad is one of my very best friends in the world. NOW.  but not when i was young.  when i was little, he was my DAD.  with big capital letters.  he dropped the hammer when necessary.  he made it clear when you were not doing things right.  he was THERE, day in and day out, for the good, the bad and the ugly.  he helped mold me into the woman i am today.  and he set high expectations.  he did his job. and if i do say so myself, he did it spectacularly.  so thanks for that pop.  you're the greatest :)

in probably the 2nd coolest twist of fate ever, i also happened to MARRY the best dad in the world.  crazy huh?  while i happen to think i'm a pretty good mom, my kids absolutely would not be the men they are today with their dad.  his is the yin to my yang.  we are point and counterpoint in this house.  but it works.  because at the end of the day, whether or not we agree on ANYTHING else, we agree on what we want for our boys.  and THAT is what makes kb so amazing.  our boys ALWAYS ALWAYS come first for him.  i know there are other dads out there that can say the same.  and i'm glad.  but maybe not enough.  and maybe not to the same extent.

kris was the 23 year old dad that stayed home alone at night with his firstborn, so i could work.  he did the whole bed/bath routine with jake for YEARS.  he was a solo parent on weekends for the first 6 years of our boys lives.  he did gymboree and trips to the zoo.  and as the kids got older, he never slacked off.  those early years set the tone for us.  kris has never skipped anything.  because he knows how important it is for him to just BE THERE.  for the kids to look up at games and awards and school functions and see BOTH their parents.  their success is equally important to both of us.  and kris has made these boys his number one.  i know they appreciate it now. but i'm even more sure that when they are grown they will easily say that their dad made them the men they've become.

The words that a father speaks to his children in the privacy of home are not heard by the world, but, as in whispering-galleries, they are clearly heard at the end and by posterity.  ~Jean Paul Richter

now kb wears many hats.  its hysterical to me that my kids call their dad COACH.  but there you go.  they have this amazingly super cool relationship that extends the normal boundaries.  but they couldn't have this one, if the foundation hadnt been there from the beginning.  kris is loved because he gives love without question.  he is respected because he has earned it by being there, day in and day out.  he is truly a gift to my kids and to me, and i KNOW we dont tell him enough.  i know i take it for granted that he will be there for me and them every day. and i shouldnt.  which is why THIS is the thing that's important enough to break my radio silence.

parenting is hard.  its the hardest job in the world.  there is no right answer and four million different ways to do it. and all with no guarantee.  what i've come to realize lately, in no small part due to the fact that jake is getting ready to fly the coop, is that anything i may be proud of regarding my kids is COMPLETELY due to what we've done TOGETHER.  kris gets a ton of credit for being a coach.  and he is a hell of a coach, dont get me wrong.  but he's a better dad. and i just think today, as we spend another father's day sitting on a lacrosse field, he gets acknowledged for what he does OFF of it.

so....happy fathers day kb.  you are the very best dad in the whole wide world.  i hope you know how much we love you and appreciate you.  none of us would be who we are today without all you've done and been and given to us all these years.

today and everyday, you are our hero :)

"In the baby lies the
future of the world.
Mother must hold the baby close
so that the baby knows it is his
world 

but the father must take him to
the highest hill so that he can see
what his world is like."

- Mayan Indian Proverb

thank you for encouraging our boys to FLY