Fathers

A couple of months ago I had a conversation on the phone with my Dad. My dad is not much of a talker so talking on the phone is not an everyday occurance, but whenever we do, I always love it. But within this particular conversation, he said something that has really stayed with me. It was a comment that he made that totally made my year because getting a compliment from my dad means the world to me. In fact, I could probably sit down and write every single compliment he has ever paid me because they have meant that much to me. They don't come too often but when they come I always know that he is completely sincere and genuine in what he is saying. Knowing that my Daddy is proud of me and pleased with the way I'm living my life, is SO SO important to me...always has been and always will. My dad is an amazing man. He will always be one of my greatest heroes. He is a man filled with charity, love, integrity,(except when it comes to obeying the "stupid" rules that don't really matter anyways), faith, perserverance and drive. I NEVER remember my dad yelling in our home (not that I didn't deserve it). All he had to do was look at me with his "I'm very disappointed" look. I think I would have rather had him yell. Just kidding. He is a man of many gifts and talents and I am so honored to be his daughter. Cory is the best father I could ever ask for to be the father of our children. He is AMAZING!!! I could go on and on and tell story after story about all the little things that he says and does all of the time that completely blow me away. But this post would never end. All of my girls are daddy's girls. He is BY FAR their favorite parent. Even Makayla will squeeze herself out of my arms and reach as far as her little body will go in order to climb her way into Cory's arms. It is SO SWEET! I hate it, but then again, I love it. :) Just to give you a little insight to how incredible of a father he is, here is a list of my top ten favorite father moments over the last 8 (almost 9 years)that Cory's been a daddy. 1. With each of our babies, he has chosen a song that is specifically for them and he sings it to them regularly (he has an AMAZING voice). Together, we chose Clairisa's song (which is God Be With Us Till We Meet Again). We still get teary-eyed and reach for each other's hand whenever it is played in church. One time Cory was driving through Asheville, so he stopped at Clairisa's gravesite and all alone he sat out there underneath the willow tree she is buried by and sang to her. 2. Last Fall, Cory had gotten home really late one night so he was not able to go on the mountain bike ride with Katelund that they had planned on doing. So, to make up for it, he surprised her a couple days later by leaving work early, pulling her out of school, taking her mountain biking, and then they went out to lunch together. 3. A couple of years ago, when Cory was in charge of a family night, he put together a spa night for all of his girls. He gave us all facials (with masks and everything). He even had candles lit and Enya playing. We still talk about that night to this day. 4. A year or so ago, Cory decided he wanted to read Harry Potter to the girls at bedtime. But he didn't want to just read the books, he wanted to do it with all the different voices and accents. We would stay up late into the night for days and watch the first movie so that he could practice the voices. Whenever it was reading time, not only would the girls anxiously snuggle up to listen, but so would I. I would drop whatever I was doing because there was no way I was going to miss out. 5. The other night as I gathered all the girls together for scripture reading, Katelund and Cloey started complaining. I was so frustrated with them and Cory could tell. So he offered to do the reading. He sat down in front of the girls and began reading in this really obnoxious voice and doing actions with everything he was saying. It's really hard to describe what he did but the girls have asked for it every night since. In fact, last night the girls came in after brushing their teeth and said, "Read the scriptures Daddy! We love reading scriptures now!!!" He just has a ways of making everything fun and exciting. 6. The other day I commented about how much it bugs me that whenever I smile at Makayla I only sometimes get a smile back, but whenever Cory does he always gets the BEST return smiles. He said to me, "how do you smile at her?" I wasn't really sure how to answer that, so I asked him how he smiles at her. This was his response, "I smile at her as if at that very moment she was the most important person to me in the whole wide world, because she is." I have realized that this same smile is how he smiles at all of our children and at me. It is just impossible to not smile back. 7. When we found out that Cloey was a girl I was so disappointed. I thought for sure we'd have a boy next. When I called Cory in tears, he just comforted me and told me how excited he was that we were having another girl. Every girl since he has been just as excited. Not once have I seen him act at all disappointed that he hasn't gotten a boy. I have been disappointed but he always reminds me of how much we love our girls and how much fun it will be to "have another girl". 8. Listening to him pray for our children is just about one of the most tender things I've ever heard. 9. From the second he gets home to the second they go to bed. He is completely 100% involved as a husband and father. He is changing diapers, helping make dinner, disciplining, giving horsey rides, laughing, tickling, etc. I have never once felt like I'm in this parenting thing alone while my husband is off providing or home resting from a long day of work. He is my partner and even calls me almost every single day at lunch time to see how I'm doing and how the kids are doing. He laughs at the funny things they do and wishes he would've been there to see or hear it. 10. Watching him kiss and hold our little Clairisa for the very last time in mortality was definitely a memory I will cherish forever. As we sat in the car we rode in before Clairisa's graveside service, I remember telling Cory that I couldn't get out of the car. I couldn't attend my own child's funeral service, it was just too hard and more than I could bear. He tenderly took my hands, looked into my eyes and said, "I can't either, but together we can. Together we can do this." A couple of Sundays ago, I went into the gym to find Cory after church, and I found Makayla asleep and all wrapped up in Cory's suit coat. It was the sweetest thing ever and I'm so glad I got a picture!! The more I've looked at it, the more I've thought about all the symbolism that goes along with this picture....the safety and security of the priesthood, the protection and love of a father, etc. I am so grateful for the fathers (and father-in-law) in my life. I always feel the warmth of love and safety whenever I am in their arms or in their presence. How grateful I am for fathers...even and especially for the Father of us all. 6.