Father's Day 2013

R. and Me (circa 2005) - M. and Me  (Feb. 2, 2013)

Today was Father's Day.  It was a lot of fun to see pictures and tributes from friends, family, and other acquaintances to their dads yesterday.

I did a birthday post for my dad's birthday last year.  I'm not sure what else I can add to that.  He's still my dad.  He's still my hero.

The picture above is a composite.  The one on the left is from 2005.  It's a picture of R. and me and I have it framed and it sits in my office. I think it's from watching the fireworks for the 4th of July in 2005.  I love that picture.

The one on the right is from earlier this year and it's a picture of M. and I at S.'s basketball game.  I love how cute and chubby his little arm is and I love how his eyes are locked in on the basketball game.  I also love the way that his hand is resting on the basketball.  It's no secret that we love hoops in my family and I hope M. loves the game as much as I have.

The Rug Rats - June 2013

I'm not the perfect dad, but I'm trying to improve.  I still have a long ways to go. But I'm really grateful that I am their dad.  Happy Father's Day!

Daddy Day Care

Okay, I know that technically it's not "daycare" or "babysitting" when it's your own kids, but it is rare for me to be in charge of all the kids by myself.  I got that chance Saturday morning.  Here's how the day went...

I had a basketball game at 8:00 a.m.  I know it's just Church basketball, but we have some really good players on the team and they are nice enough to make me feel like I actually contribute something when I come play.  But today, I didn't play.  At 7:15 a.m., I had to text my teammates to let them know I couldn't play because I was in charge of the kids.

S. had a Little League game at 9:00 a.m., which meant that he had to be at the field at 8 a.m.  I rushed him over there, but of course, E. didn't want to be left at home, so I brought her as well.  I had to pray the M. wouldn't wake up while I was gone.  I left R. in charge of M. in my absence, and hoped that the neighbors wouldn't call the cops to report that the children had been left home alone.  (Like they actually did one time!)

Ju-Ju-Be's Be Hip Bag--Perfect for Daddy Day Care

Then I came home to get the kids ready to go with me to the game.  R. wasn't feeling that great, so I made the executive decision to leave him at home.  I had actually been counting on him to help me with the younger kids at the game, so it wasn't great news that he couldn't make it.

It took a few minutes to find my Daddy Diaper Bag.  I bought it for myself in the run-up to Christmas and had it all stocked with everything that I thought I would need (i.e., diapers, formula, bottle, wipies, and plastic bags.)  Yes, I know that the color is a little boring, but apparently the most important thing in a bag is that it be wipeable--and this one is!  Ju-Ju-Be has really awesome colors and patterns for their bags, but as a guy, I'm really looking for something that isn't going to draw a lot of attention.  I need to remind myself to add a ball and some toys to the bag for our next outing.  Otherwise, this was perfect!

I got a call from my parents in Colombia on the way to the game.  I don't get to talk to them as much as I'd like, so I found myself carting M. in one arm and a diaper bag, folding chair, and E.'s hand in the other as we walked up to the game.  I probably shouldn't give myself too much credit for that balancing act though.  I have a sneaking suspicion that moms do that all the time.

My cell phone dropped my parents' call as we actually reached the field, which may have been a good thing because I had plenty to keep me busy once we got there.

I got to spend a lot of time holding M., which was actually pretty fun.  He is growing so fast and he's not going to be little for very much longer.  He is definitely our biggest kid and has a pretty healthy appetite.

M. playing with one of our neighbors

I got to put my diaper bag through its paces at the game.  M. needed a diaper change and I totally had it nailed.  The Ju-Ju-Be bag comes with a memory foam changing pad and I threw that down and took care of business.  The plastic bags came in super-handy as well (what would I ever do if those things ever get banned???).  I'm feeling really good about the diaper bag and I'm excited to use it again.

Doesn't M. look comfy?

We had this cute grandma and grandpa couple next to us as well as some of the other moms and they kept on remarking on what a good baby M. was and how cute he was.  What could I say?  I couldn't agree more!  I felt like I had this baby-watching stuff totally under control.

I think E. dressed herself this morning.  But I still think she looks cute!

I admit being pretty focused on M. while E. played on the small playground right behind us.  I remember E. coming over a couple of times to check in with me and I was kind of congratulating myself on how well things were going.  Famous last words...

A few minutes after I took those pictures above, I decided to check in on E.  I looked for her at the playground.  Couldn't see her.  I started calling her name, but there was no response.  I wasn't too worried, but went to check the bathrooms.  Both of them.  Nada.  I went to the soccer field next door--calling her name increasingly more loudly and with increasingly more urgency.  No one had seen her.  I couldn't see her.  My pace quickened as I started checking the far side of the baseball field--she was nowhere in sight.

I completed my circuit and got back to the playground.  I was holding back the panic and was wondering if it was too late to call 911.  My calls for E. had attracted the attention of some of the other moms at the game.  Even though I hadn't asked for their help, they were jumping in to aid me and I could tell that they were concerned as well.  It actually gave me some comfort.

Just when I was ready to give in to utter panic, I spotted E.  She was on the playground at the bottom of the twisty, covered slide.  Apparently when I was looking for her, she had been playing inside the slide and either didn't hear me or didn't respond.  I told her how scared I was and that she needed to always be somewhere where she could see me.  I felt a little silly that it ultimately turned into a false alarm, but the experience made me realize how quickly something bad could happen.  I need to make sure I keep an eye on them!

I think M. is tired.  :-)

Have I mentioned how long these Little League games can be?  M. was an absolute angel, but toward the end (and after the excitement having me carry him around the field in our search for E.), M. started to get tired and would bury his head in my chest.  It was very cute.

Once the game was over, we loaded up the car and I decided to take the kids to Chick-Fil-A to get everybody lunch (and take advantage of our 50% discount).  I had a sneaking suspicion that M. was not going to make it all the way home.  I was right.

My little angel

I got the kids home, made sure they were fed, put M. in bed to continue his nap, and sat down on my bed for a second.  And I woke up 4 hours later!  Apparently, M. wasn't the only one who was wiped out by the morning's events.  Watching the kids is exhausting!  How do you moms manage to do this every.single.day???

My Dad, My Hero

My Dad and My Sister at Her Wedding

My dad celebrated a birthday recently.  He is a great man--truly a gentleman and a scholar.  He is also a giant of a man, both physically and spiritually, so I have always looked up to him.  I consider myself a really good gifter, but he's always really hard to shop for.  What do you get for the man that has everything and is so generous with others?

Here are the Top 10 Things that I love about my dad:

#10 - He is incredibly smart.  He majored in chemistry and then went to law school where he graduated #1 in his class.  What's the connection between law school and chemistry?  There is none really.  It's just that he loves learning and was so smart that he was able to master both subjects.

#9 - He is generous.  My dad is always asking what he can do to help us.  I know he does that a lot for other people too.  And I'm sure that there are many people that my dad has helped that no one knows about.  As a kid, I remember my dad helping people with legal problems or issues without asking for any money.

#8 - He is a patriarch.  Literally, figuratively, and spiritually, my dad is a patriarch of our family.  I am grateful for the blessing of comfort, of health, and of guidance that he has given me and others in our family.

#7 - He is a lawyer.  As a kid, I saw my dad preparing for trial by spreading documents out across the dining room table.  I knew that he loved the intellectual challenge of learning about his clients and preparing for trial.  It made me want to be a lawyer as well.  I always imagined being able to practice law with my dad.  One of the highlights of my legal career was being able to try a case with him several years ago.  It was a wrongful death case and the jury came back with a $2.1 million verdict in favor of our client.  I will always remember doing that case with my dad.

Post-Trial Celebration Pic

#6 - He is a missionary.  My dad served a mission as a young man in South America.  He learned Spanish and was blessed immensely for his service.  Then he and my family went on another mission while I was in college.  He had to shut down his entire law practice to go--knowing that he would have to come back and start over from scratch.  He didn't care, he did it any way.  My mom and he were recently called to serve another mission--to a country in South America.  He will do a great job and the missionaries he works with are lucky to be able to serve with him and my mom.

#5 - He can fix anything.  As a kid, my dad's dad fixed everything.  My dad has the same attitude.  I have helped him change the oil in our cars, fix washing machines, do brake jobs, fix chainsaws, cut firewood, fix broken water pipes, prune trees, and install sprinkler systems.  Please note that I've never watched my dad paint or helped him paint.  He hates painting!  Nevertheless, I firmly believe that given the right tools, my dad could fix anything!

#4 - He is an athlete.  He loves and plays pretty much any sport and he has always supported his kids in playing soccer, baseball, volleyball, football, basketball, and swimming.  When he was in the military, he won trophies in diving competitions and went spear fishing in the Panama Canal.  He loves bodysurfing the waves at the beach.  When he turned 50, he decided to do a "Tin Man" Triathlon (Olympic Distance).  But he wanted to do it on his birthday, so he went to the YMCA, swam a mile in the pool, then figured out a route that would be 25 miles and end at our house, where he finished by running a 10k.  He did it by himself all on his own, and he did it for himself.  I didn't really even know about it until he finished.  I don't think he trained for it.  I think that I decided that someday I was going to do a triathlon myself the day he finished his Tin Man at age 50.

#3 - He is a basketball player.  He tried out for the BYU basketball team as a freshman at BYU (back in the day when freshman couldn't play varsity).   In high school, his church team went to Salt Lake City from Washington D.C. to play in the finals of the All-Church Tournament (this was back when Church Basketball was a big deal--not a joke).  In college, he was named MVP of the All-Church Tournament.  His trophy that he won for that has always amazed me.  I'd like to think that I was as good of a player as he was, but that may well be doubtful.  ;-)

#2 - He is tall.  At 6'5", he towers over most people.  I probably owe my height to him, even though I'll always be looking up to him--both figuratively and literally

#1 - He is humble.  He is probably going to ask me to take this down as soon as he sees it!  Enjoy it while you can!

Happy Birthday Dad!  I love you!