In Honor of 19 Years of Fatherhood

When you first get married, you have so many stars in your eyes and dreams in your heart, you imagine everything will be wonderful from that day forward. It doesn't even cross your mind about what type of parent your spouse is going to be because everything is going to be just wonderful because you're still living in a love vacuum. You don't yet realize that its the struggles, hardships, and uncertainties of life that you navigate through together that are gifts that have the capacity to grow your marriage, character, and heart. Life happens. It's how we handle those happenings that bring us joy, sorrow, heartache, hardships, adventures and direct the course of our marriage. Parenting definitely is a recipe that combines all those ingredients. Adding children to the marriage brings a reality you can't plan for, expect, or understand until you walk through it together. It has been my greatest joy to share all the ups and downs that come with parenting with my best friend and favorite person in the world, Chuck.

The tenderness and gentleness you see in these pictures is genuine. He is gentle to the core of his being. He adores his children and it oozes out of him. From Day 1 when he met Gavin at birth, he's been the most proactive, purposeful, patient Dad I know. 

He's respectful of the kids. He's supremely patient. He's steady and always kind. 

He's uber-playful, can build amazing Lego creations and even do pop-a-wheelies on his bike. Which really impressed the kids when they were younger. (FYI - that doesn't have the same impressive effect now that they're all teenagers.)

He'a always ready for an adventure - especially ones that veer off the beaten path.

And playing is his specialty. He is THE BEST at playing in water - the pool, beach, sprinklers. The kids tire out before he does. He seemingly has endless energy reserves.

The kids genuinely want to be around him. They all get - and love - his sense of humor. Which was hilarious when they were little. Now, not so much. But I'm sure it will circle back around again. During teenagehood, parents loose any and all "cool" credentials for a while. The teenager alone is worthy of all things "cool."

I love how he takes time to be with them. You have to do that when they're young if you want them to take the time to be with you when they're older. It's the only thing kids understand. They desperately desire time with their favorite people (their parents) when they're little and bask in the light of their presence. It's the single best gift we ever gave our kids - the gift of ourselves. And Chuck led the way in that effort. He didn't only say it was important. He went out of his way to do things with them - take them on dates individually, do an activity of the kids' choosing, play with them even when he was tired. I've always admired how he would rather sacrifice his sleep than his time with his kids. 

All those hours of playing Legos, having tea parties, chasing make-believe bad guys, running around the park, throwing the ball, riding bikes, playing games and reading to them when they were younger has yielded this goofy group of amazing adolescents who actually want to hang out with their Dad. What a beautiful gift to watch up close. It is a constant thankful in my life, to have married a man who is an amazing, humble, and fun-loving Dad.