Happy Birthday Daddy!

Most people I meet tend to think my Dad is a pretty serious guy.  Honestly, he looks pretty intimidating at 6 foot 6.  He doesn't smile with strangers and has a pretty intense stare with his icy blue eyes.  One glance and you'll never think about crossing him.  But, I've been fortunate enough to know another side of him.

When I was in kindergarten, he started giving us a "Rule of the Day."  My favorite of all time was "Don't put a rocket up your teacher's butt and then say, 'Teacher!  You should be a rocket scientist...you've got it within you!'"  At the age of 9 or so, this was pretty much the funniest thing I'd ever heard.

My Dad would frequently be the one to pick me up from my half day kindergarten, too.  He would stop and get a soda from a gas station on the way and write "RLM" on the lid knowing we shared these initials.  We would debate who the soda belonged to the whole way home and finally agree to share it. 

With so many daughters, my Dad loved working with the Boy Scouts during my preteen years.  I remember laughing at the stories of him hiking into the mountains in the middle of the night (after getting off an evening shift) to join them on an overnight...only to perch a short distance from camp and scare them with elk calls.

I'm so grateful to have had such an amazing Dad for all these years.  He's been my biggest supporter, greatest challenger, and has believed in me when no one else does.  I've never once seen him react in anger but often thoughtfully stood up for what he knew was right.  Only once, I saw him raise his voice with someone on the phone...and that was when the company was harassing me.  And, he has always known how to get a laugh out at just the right moment.

Happy Birthday Daddy!!  I love you!!