Dee-Eh-Dee-Dee-Why.

It's Father's Day. And I love my dad. Figured it was a good time to post! I wish I had access to all the good classic pictures of my dad from back in the day. But I only have a few, so we'll have to improvise.

So I know that everyone thinks this, but my dad seriously is THE BEST. For one thing, I get my astonishing good looks from him. :) (I know you're all thinking no way man, she looks like her mom. Well the truth is that I get the dark hair, brown eyes, and darker skin from her. When it comes to my face, I really look like the padre.) But on a more serious note, I am sooooooo grateful for everything he's done for me. I'm so glad I can look back at my life and always remember him being there. Some of my favorite early memories of him include:

• playing Barbies with my sister and I. (I really wish I had that picture!)
• taking me to the TV station when he had to work on the weekends. I loved sitting at his desk, spinning around in his cool chair, and getting to be on set watching while he did the news. I loved hanging out with the news crew, they all were so nice to me.
• the clever way he'd get me to wash the dishes. There's a Disney Sing-a-long video I was obsessed with called "Fun with Music". When we'd wash the dishes together, he'd sing, "Fun with dishes, fun with dishes, doing dishes is fuuuuuuuun"....

He was at every major and not so major event in my life. My baptism, basketball and volleyball games, DARE graduation, all the daddy-daughter dates, just about every concert/parade/talent show/recital I ever played piano, drums, or sang at for the past 14 years, teaching me how to parallel park and being so excited for me when I finally passed my driver's test (I failed it the first time), helping set me apart when I had callings in the Beehive, Mia Maid, and Laurel presidencies, when I went to my first prom as a sophomore I flew to Washington to go with my friend Paul and Dad came with so I wouldn't have to be on the airplane by myself, being there when I received my Young Womanhood Recognition and completed the Personal Progress Program, seminary graduation, high school graduation, always doing my taxes for me, helping me fill out my FAFSA and completing other financial aid forms, driving me out to Utah and helping move me in to my first apartment, and I can't wait for him to be there for all the other future events that are to come in my lifetime.

Right before I went off to my Senior prom.

High school graduation.

He introduced me to the Beatles, who have been a part of my life since the moment I was born, and still are today. I will forever be in debt to my dad for this, because this later got me to have an absolutely HUGE love of music. Music is probably the biggest part of my life (besides the gospel, of course), and I've had amazing opportunities because of it and was able to learn the importance of sharing my talents. I've won many awards throughout the years at various competitions and have gotten to play and sing in some really fantastic places, none of which would have been possible without the introduction he gave me to music (and the Beatles).

Some of my favorite Beatles memorabilia...

He's taught me many things (most of which are obviously a combined effort with my mother): the value of a dollar and how to work hard, all about guys and how their minds work (something I still don't understand completely), how to love unconditionally, being willing to serve, how to righteously fufill callings, to have a love of the gospel, my Heavenly Father, the scriptures, etc., and that I can always find room to increase my knowledge of those things, and how to find the qualities that I want in a future husband.

I am so thankful for the example he is to me, my family, and others. I'm thankful I had the opportunity to be brought up in a home where my father holds the priesthood honorably. I'm thankful there's always going to be at least one man in my life that will always think I'm beautiful.
One thing is for sure.....


HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!