Thank You for Being My Daddy

Well, the thought occurred to me late Sunday night as I drifted off to sleep that I forgot to post a "Happy Father's Day" post on my blog, so here it is...I guess better late than never, right?

First of all, I spent Father's Day with the people I should have spent it with...my father-in-law, my own father, and the wonderful father of my children! It was a wonderful father's day! And Sunday night as I lay in bed trying to go to sleep, I let myself think of these three men and how important they are to me. Jan's father is such a nice, caring person with a great personality and since the day I met him, he has always been a gentleman to me. He's someone that I enjoy being around very much. I wish we got to see him more often, but he travels with work alot, and our visits our too few and far between!

And my own father...Well, those of you who know me well know that he is very special to me. What would I want you that don't know me or my father to know about my daddy? For starters, I believe that he greatly desired to be a father before he ever had me. I believe that he had faith that God would someday make him a father, and after much patience (7 yrs. worth) he and my mother welcomed me into their lives. And since that day, I can honestly say that I took top priority in his life. Of course, he had to work and work hard he did to provide for me. But when he got home, I had his full attention. I cannot remember a time that I ever had to ask my dad to turn off the T.V. to come play ball outside with me or sit in the floor so I could challenge him to a game of "Concentration." (AKA "Memory Match") I don't remember a ballgame or recital or concert or play or program where my daddy was not present! He would sometimes come straight from work in his pharmacist labcoat to make it there because he wanted to be there for me.

And I thank you for being my Daddy! Thank you for being there for me. Thank you for reading books to me every night before I went to sleep. Thank you for taking me to church and teaching me to sing and pray and for sitting beside me on the brown leather chair in our old living room as I invited Jesus into my heart. Thank you for showing me patience and forgiveness, so that I might show it to others. Thank you for throwing me in the swimming pool! :-) Thank you for hunting and chasing crabs with me on the beach. Thank you for instilling in me a love for music and history. Thank you for walking me down the aisle as you gave me away to be married to a handsome young man who was nervously waiting at the front of our church. I think that it's very fitting, and I like the fact that my children call you "Daddy Nick" because as the saying goes...Anyone can be a father, but it takes someone special to be called "Daddy."

As I end this post, the other very special Daddy that I couldn't possibly leave out is Jan, my wonderfully sweet husband and father of our 3 children. I love you, Jan. I love the way you love our children. I will never forget how you wore your "New Dad" hat for two weeks after John Owen was born. I love the way you work so hard for our family. I love how you desire to be involved in our children's lives in every way you can be! I cannot begin to think of anyone I would rather have to be the father of my children! And like I said in the Father's Day poem I wrote for you last year, I love the fact that all three of our children are so much like you in their own ways. I believe God sent you to me to be my best friend, husband and "Daddy" for our children, and I thank God for the gift He gave in your life. I look forward to watching you be "Daddy" to John Owen, Jonah and Mary Claire and celebrating many more Father's Days with you! I look forward to hearing our children say to you, as they grow & are able to recognize and realize your love for them, "Thank you for being my Daddy!"
Hope you had a great Father's Day!
I love you more than words can say!
Love, Nicole