I am sure one of these years I will be able to sit down and do a post on how much I appreciate the men and fathers in my life-but today is not that day unfortunately haha! Still, I wanted to document Father's Day 2014 and how we celebrated it.

Last Father's Day was Lester's first official one, but because of his work schedule, we weren't able to be together, let alone spoil him. So this year we wanted to make sure we made our best effort at that! He was just coming off of a 24 hr shift, so I wanted to make sure that when he came through that door, he had breakfast and some fun things to come home to before we headed to church. So, I woke up at 6:00 to make him [and my Dad] cinnamon rolls from scratch. [I am night time/sleep in pregnant person so this in itself was a huge effort haha!] We also had some cards Addy and I have filled w/ gifts, coloring and other fun to go along with this. At church, we learned more about the importance and gift of fatherhood and how wonderful a blessing it is. The kids even made little treats/gifts for their Dads so that was fun. We came home and Lester got a good, long, uninterrupted nap after his long shift the day before. We had a nice big dinner and dessert as a family, and then he spent HIS special day building Addy a new sandbox. Because that is just the kind of husband and Dad my Lester is. Ya, that's right, what up!



I also would be remiss if I didn't take a beat to acknowledge my own Dad. Although I made sure there was ice in the house for his Pepsi the day before, and helped out with the basic cooking and cleaning, at the end of the day I didn't do as much as I probably should have for him. But still, he spent the day in true Father example mode by catering to my Mom who tried to make the day special for him, but was feeling quite sick. There is a quote by Elaine S. Dalton that says 

"The most important thing a father can do for his daughter is to love her mother. By the way you love her mother, you will teach your daughter about tenderness, loyalty, respect, compassion, and devotion. She will learn from your example what to expect from young men and what qualities to seek in a future spouse. You can show your daughter by the way you love and honor your wife that she should never settle for less. Your example will teach your daughter to value womanhood. You are showing her that she is a daughter of our Heavenly Father, who loves her....so how do you raise a girl? Love her Mother."

My Dad messes around a lot, and I often joke that people only wonder why I am the way I am until they meet my Dad-but as far as the above goes, there has never been any doubt in my mind that he loves, values and respects my Mom and that I should never settle for less then that myself. That has made all the difference, so I appreciate him for that-it helped me realize what a jackpot I hit when I got my sweet hubby.




I am grateful to all the Dad's in my life-especially Lester, my Dad and Lester's Dad for their constant presence and example in my life. I am happy to say I am living a life with fully involved, active men in my life and that I don't think my kids will ever have to experience going without that either, like my Dad and some other kids do. I am truly blessed, and I know it.

So Happy Father's Day to all you papa's and men out there-we love you and need you and appreciate all you do!