There's a saying that "anyone can father a child, but it takes a great man to be a dad." My father is a WONDERFUL dad. I have so many amazing memories of my childhood because of him. From the BIG moments (like the trips to various amusement parks) to the little moments that have taken me this long to truly appreciate... he has always been there.

He was always there for every event we ever had, silently cheering in the back row as he captured every moment with his video camera. He was the one to take us on adventures in the summer... weekly trips to the beach, and the occasional trip to Disneyland, Sea World or Universal Studios. And when we got "too cool" to hang out with just him, he let us bring a friend along (and even paid for them, as well).

In the mornings as we got ready for school, he would warm our socks up near the oven so they'd be nice and toasty when we put them on. And sometimes he'd move our stools close so we could warm our bodies, as well.

He took the time to not only brush my hair and give me pigtails, but curl the ends with a curling iron and even tie matching ribbons around each one.

On weekends he made us chocolate chip pancakes... with maple syrup for me and caro syrup for my brother.

He learned about the various art projects we did in school (or in Shaun's cub scouts), then purchased the supplies so we could do them together again as a family. We learned how to make sand paintings with chalk and salt, holiday ornaments from sand dollars and napkins, and even how to create faces with nylons and cotton balls.

He chauffeured my best friends and I around when we were obnoxious pre-teens. (To this day, he STILL claims that we were more trouble than my brother and his friends.)

So, for all this and so much more than I could even begin to list here... I'd like to take a moment to thank my dad.

happy Father's Day, Dadoo...