Father of Mine

Its been 14 years since my Dad passed away, and each year while I thought it would get easier-it doesn't. There are so many things that he missed out on, not only in my life but in my sister's life as well. He never got to walk me down the aisle, watch me marry the love of my life, start my own family. He was a dog person, so he'd love the puppy dog. And I think he'd get a big kick out of the little man.
The same with my father in law-he would have loved my son. (and the puppy dog too)Both were accountants, and both died from colon cancer (talk about the irony!) and both had great senses of humor.
There are glimpses of both that I get from time to time in things said or done. Movies sometimes open the floodgates. My Dad's favorite movie was Its A Wonderful Life (boy was he angry when they tried to colorize it!). Every Christmas, when its on, I sob like a baby-not because of the story, but because I miss my Dad. It never fails-I had a hard time finding gifts for both my Dad and Dad in law while they were alive, but once they passed gift ideas jumped out of the woodwork. In fact, it would send me into sensory overload. There are other things that bring back the memories. Little Man has my sister's old Big Bird toy, and when he used to play with it, it brought back memories of my dad playing with her when she was that age. She was 6 when he died, so she has spent most of her life without a dad. Technically speaking, he was my stepfather-my birth dad had died when I was an infant-but he was always my dad. He suffered through my teenage years, and was there for me for both the highs and lows. He was a true dad.
Little Man is lucky, because his dad, the Big Man, is an awesome father. Honestly, he's an even better dad than I thought he was going to be (and I knew he'd be a great dad all along). He is willing to go to work at 3AM, so that the Little Man wouldn't have to be in daycare after school and that they can have special time together everyday. He's willing to sacrifice sleep and probably lots more to be there for his son. He finished our basement all by himself (all of it-plumbing, wiring and all that)and made a great play room area for the Little Man-plus his very own man cave. He works very, very hard. He cooks dinner most nights, especially since by the time I get home and cook, we'd be eating at 7pm (right before he needs to go to bed). He cleans the house, does laundry and takes care of the outside too. He does so much for us, and takes care of our needs.
Big Man is a great dad-they love spending time together and doing things together. I know that I am blessed to have a husband who loves his family as much as he does. He had a great role model in his father. It shows.
Tonight we are having a special Father's Day Dinner. Baked potatoes, corn and bacon wrapped London broil with brownies (and berry sauce for me). I don't know what the plans are for today, but whatever it is, it will be fun. We already gave him his cards, and he seemed to really like them. Looking forward to a great day with my boys-which is my favorite thing to do.
Happy Father's Day!