Monday, October 13, 2008

Jennifer's Favorite "Dad" Memories



The other night I started jotting down some of my favorite memories of our times together, Dad. The happy memories kept coming... here are a few! (It basically turned into a list of things I love & appreciate about you...)

*When I threw your Gold Cross pen out the window of the moving car
*For encouraging mom to stay at home with us girls
*For continuing to give Jac & I baths at night no matter how many times we pooped in the tub!
* For dealing with our hair, tender heads and my insistence on wearing only purple!
*When my hamster died, you used the book, "Everything I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten" to teach me about dying.
*For providing a way for mom to live here when we were young.
*For the music nights... I guess I just remember you putting in cd's and we would all dance around and listen to the music as kids
*For working so hard to provide for us all...
*For helping me make an AWESOME solar system model for school
*For letting me stay in Ft. Smith during the court case so I could see you win. Praise God!
*For instilling in me a love for politics. I remember when we watched the election coverage when George H Bush ran against Bill Clinton... and beyond.
*For teaching me to love people.
*For the fun ski trips... Sipadookie and Beyond!
*For encouraging me to go to Nicaragua for my first mission trip and for making me work to earn money for it. Remember I called about 300 men from Mena regarding Promise Keepers?
*For the Dauphen Island Trips
*For loving me when I made huge mistakes!
*For being such a great BOB the TOMATO!
*For being a dad that all my friend's loved. I had to share you with lots...but I didn't mind!
*For letting me sleep with you and mom when I was scared (even in High School...)
*For the old school DABC youth days... you, Victor, Brad McClenney, Jim Classen, ect, etc... "Don't be a turkey. Trust & Obey!", Josh McDowell, Acquire the Fire, etc etc.
*For giving me my first Rich Mullins CD.
*For teaching me how to drive...on the old roads behind the airport... at your own risk! I still ride the shoulder because of those lessons.
*For the "homely" hope chest and all the C.S. Lewis books for Christmas! :)
*For the look on your face when I walked into Dixie Cafe in Fayetteville with my blue Roxy wig. You were not impressed!
*For letting mom throw us such fun birthday parties... and for getting involved, such as the hayride where you planted people to scare us or the limo ride and dinner or the amazing party at Raspberry Manor when I was eighteen and you broke the thermometer thing.
*For the nights we all stayed home and watched old movies like "The Egg & I" and ate Chinese food.
*For the great and very practical gift of luggage when I graduated. Seriously, I love that luggage and it has been all over the world.
*For being such a cell phone FANATIC! Remember the huge phone you had years ago?
*For helping me pick out, inspect and buy my first car and for going to the bank with me.
*For dropping me off at Teen Mania and making me stay, hysterical sobbing and all... I am so glad that I stuck that one out!
*For knowing that I could trust your judgement with Daniel. I found so much peace and confirmation in knowing that you and the rest of the family were for us!
*For making Dan & I sign the Covenant Marriage Certificate and for telling Dan that you'd kill him if we ever divorced. :) Not gonna happen!
*For helping me plan the wedding. For buying me that amazing dress and chairs and food and decorations and on and on!
*For the week before the wedding when you could not stop crying and when you told me that we needed to basically spend as much time together as a family the week before the wedding as possible.
*For walking me down the aisle. I couldn't have gone with out you, for praying at the wedding, for giving me away to such an amazing man.
*For calling me the next morning and telling me how wonderful the wedding had been and how God had blessed us. That meant a lot to me and Dan.
*For blessing us with the things that we can't buy for ourselves and for our kids.
*For buying me the Pregnant Mom Willow Tree well before I got pregnant and for the Grand baby Hope Chest.
*For selling cows so that Sophie could have baby furniture. :)
*For loving my girls SO much!
*For being Sophie's biggest fan!
*For planning and hosting such a fun baby shower and 26th Birthday party for me. Thank you!
*For being such a pillar of support to Daniel and I when Grace was in the hospital. For taking care of our needs, for being there, for spending the morning hours at Grace's side. For all the sweet pictures you took of her and sent to us.
*For being 100% for TRUTH!
*For loving the unlovable and giving people so many second chances.
*For being so generous!
*For teaching me about grace.
*For always offering an open door at our home to those in need.
*For living with SO MANY GIRLS!
*For leading our family during the good times and bad with such humble strength and wisdom.
*For constantly reading and searching out wisdom in all areas of life.
*For teaching us to pray as we drove to school in the mornings.
*For being so faithful to His Church even when it is personally painful.
*For allowing God to do such a work in your life and in the life of those in your family. I know it hasn't been easy, but you have continued to press through and have allowed God to break you and rebuild you, to prune you, to use you in extraordinary ways. I know my life would not have been the same if you had not sold out your life to Him when you did and for that I am eternally grateful.

This just scratched the surface. I love you so much, Dad and I am so proud to be your daughter. May God truly bless you and keep you, may He continue the work that He has started in you. He who began it is faithful. May you continue to grow to look more and more like Jesus. May you know how loved you are and may you walk in peace and joy all the days of your life. You are a great Dad, Father-in-law and Pappy to me and my family! I am proud to be your first born. :)
Jennifer






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