Father's Day Archives - A Father of Twin Boys

To all of the fathers out there, Happy Father’s Day!

Tonight, as I rocked the boys and got them settled, I started to drift back to my childhood. And as the thunderstorm started, I was taken back to when I was about 10, sitting on the back porch with my dad, just talking or not. My father and I haven’t always had the best relationship. There are a lot of reasons, none that ever need to be made public, but what does need to be made public is the outcome. And as I was rocking the boys and kissing their heads, a text from my dad came in wishing me a Happy Father’s Day and it got me thinking and this is for the most part, my text back to my dad.

As the boys drift off to sleep, I am reminded of my childhood. I am reminded of the nights when you would get a call to be activated with the Army and needed to leave within a few hours. I am reminded of the nights of talks on the back porch during storms, as we are having one now. I am reminded about the good and sometimes the bad, but how we always get back to the good, somehow.

It hasn’t always been an easy path, but I have never doubted for a single minute your love or if I needed you, that you wouldn’t be there for me. You taught me courage & leadership. You taught me that it is ok to lean on friends and ask for help. You showed me that it is ok to let your kids see a vulnerable side.

I remember the night we talked, I think it was a Thursday night, in the work shop & you told me that you were being activated for the Persian Gulf War and it was one of the few times you teared up and said that you were afraid. I remember the Friday night, you were sitting on your bed & you said that things had to change between you and mom. I remember the call you made to let me know that grandma had passed away.

Throughout each of those things, you provided comfort to me, when you were hurting. I just hope and pray, that if i am faced with any challenges, that I can do that for the boys. You trained me to lead & take charge. You trained me to face challenges head on and move past them. You trained me , treat everyone with respect, especially those that serve.

I love you dad. We’ve been through a lot, but beer, beer & hops somehow seemed to make sense on an call one morning.

You see, throughout it all, the good and the bad, my Dad was always there. We might have gone weeks or months without speaking, but I knew that if I needed him, he was there for me, just as I will always be there for my kids. My father was a Col. in the Army, so when I say that I was trained, it isn’t that much of a stretch, but those trainings, have taught me a lot about life. Good and bad. What to do and what not to do.

Those things, have shaped me into the father that I am today. So to all of the father’s out there, my father, my grandfather and my father in law, to list a few, I salute you all and raise my glass and toast you all.

Happy’s Father’s Day

Father’s Day has an entirely new meaning and I hope that I can do this justice in what I’m trying to say.

Growing up as a kid, I always remember celebrating Father’s Day late, because my father was in the Army and wasn’t always home. I understood as best as I could as a kid why he wasn’t there, but it always bothered me.

Last year, I had a work trip and had to be leave on Father’s Day before dinner. I got to spend the day with my boys and with my wife’s family, but most importantly, my boys.

This year, my wife had to work all weekend and I was with the boys all weekend. On Saturday, we went to the playground twice, ran errands, etc. But we were together. I took them to lunch at the restaurant behind the house, we talked and laughed the entire time. We went to Target and they each got a toy for behaving so well for the week. I took them back to the playground for more running and they asked for Ice Cream and who doesn’t love Ice Cream? So we stopped at the grocery store and grabbed a pint of Ice Cream and cones, a steak for me and we were back home.

On Father’s Day, my wife was at home for maybe an hour after I got up and then she was off to work. The boys asked me to cook breakfast, especially bacon. So, I did just that. I do like I always do, I put on a movie and I started cooking sausage, bacon, eggs, and home fries. A little over the top with breakfast? Maybe, but it was good. And then we went to my father in laws house for a cookout.

Was I disappointed that my Father’s Day was not one of grilling and/or smoking something outside? Missing out on watching the US Open? Sleeping in?

YES! Yes I was and honestly to a point, I still am. And maybe I have some unresolved issues with the importance of Father’s Day and always doing things for my Dad and he wasn’t there for Father’s Day?

But I have realized something, two days later. I got the best Father’s Day present while cooking. Baby A walked over to me, reached up and asked to hug me and as I bent down, he kissed me on the cheek and told me he loved me. A present that will last a lifetime and that will mean more than anything else. And after seeing what Baby A did, Baby B walked over and said “Kiss” and I leaned down and he gave me a kiss.

There is a part of me that feels cheated, but there is an even bigger part of me that is just so damn proud of those boys. I didn’t get any gifts. I didn’t get to sleep in. I didn’t get to watch golf. Instead, I got to be a Dad. I got to do something that my father rarely did, celebrate Father’s Day with my boys.