HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Today is my Dad's birthday!!!!!!!! Since I'm not there to celebrate with him, I thought I would write some things about Dad! Here are 53 memories and things I love about you to celebrate your 53 years!!!
1. He is one of my best friends!
2. We talk almost every day. Even if it's just to check in. I love it.
3. He is one of the most GIVING people I have ever met. He would do anything for his family!
4. He is a very proud Irishman! :)
5. Dad is always good for a laugh! Whether it's with him or at him, that just depends!
6. When we were little, he always made us listen to broadway shows. I know all the words to Les Miserables.
7. Dad, John and I made a tradition of going to ice hockey games together. We went all the time and I love looking back on those memories!
8. I am a HUGE OU fan. That is thanks to my dad! We grew up with OU and Notre Dame football!
9. When Dad got REALLY mad at us, his eyes would bulge out of his head! hahaha. John and I laugh about this all the time!
10. I have always been close to my Dad. When I was little, I would sit outside the bathroom door and wait for him to come out!
11. Dad would always drive us to school. Whoever sat in the front seat got to hold his hand. We always fought over the front. I'm sure most siblings do, but we fought to hold Dad's hand!
12. "Sorry Lauri"....haha. John and Dad would want to play that game "Sorry" just so they could say that to me and make me mad! Also Dad would tease me saying, "I'm not in the moooood!" I guess I said that once or twice!
13. Oh, this is a good one. We would all be sitting in the living room. Dad would secretly call my phone in my bedroom. I would run back there to get it and he would hang up. This is before caller ID and cordless phones. He would do this over and over and I would ALWAYS fall for it!
14. When I was in middle school, I would "sneak out" the back door at night to meet up with friends in the field behind our house. There was a manual lock at the top of the sliding glass door that slid out. Dad would put a penny up there so he would know if I snuck out. I don't know how many times this actually worked, but I always put it back. I figured I had a 50/50 shot at getting it right.
15. He has the BEST Donald Duck voice!!!! Jocelyn loves it considering one of her favorite shows is Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.
16. Jocelyn LOVES talking to her Grandpa on the phone! She knows Grandpa is up for teasing, so they usually end up teasing each other. It's soooo funny to listen to!
17. I remember going to the lake and Dad teaching us to float on our back. I don't know why that sticks out in my mind. Maybe b/c it was scary but we trusted that he wouldn't let us drowned!
18. All of my friends loved my dad growing up! He was definitely the cool dad! Except I knew better than to bring boys home. I would just end up getting embarressed! Dad thought I didn't date much.....hahahaha.
19. Speaking of boys, I was SO nervous for Graham and Dad to meet!!! I picked Dad up from the airport and we went to pick up his tux from the store. We pulled up and I saw Graham's truck there! I about turned around and left, but things turned out okay and Dad didn't embarress me too badly. They are really good friends now, which I LOVE!
20. He came to every one of my basketball games, even though we were HORRIBLE! We just liked to flirt with our coach instead of worry about our score! He also came to all of my dance recitals, even though they were extremely long and probably really boring....except for when I danced. That was the best, of course!
21. When John threw parties while Dad was out of town, he ALWAYS KNEW! I have no clue how. Maybe he had a secret spy or something. Or maybe he read police reports! hahahahahaha.
22. John and I had some pretty brutal fights growing up! We would fight like crazy and then when it came time for Dad to get involved, we would make up a story about how that hole got into the wall or whatever. Dad NEVER believed us and usually got John to tell the truth somehow! Sheesh John! I bet Dad secretly laughed though and enjoyed our sibling bond!!!!
23. If ANYONE messes with his kids....WATCH OUT!!! John used to get picked on at the bus stop. One day, Dad yelled at the kid and I'm pretty sure the kid peed in his pants!
24. Kelly, Nick and Mozart. Our shelties growing up. Dad LOVES shelties and now that's the only kind of dog I would own.
25. One time, I was in BIG trouble for something and Dad was yelling at me and was backing up out of my bedroom and somehow twisted his ankle. I didn't know what to do! Go help and see if he was okay, or take the opportunity to run for my life! hehe.
26. Dad would ALWAYS put the Christmas lights on the Christmas tree. Ask Graham. I am VERY particular about how our lights go on the tree b/c Dad was alawys so good at it!
27. Pepsi and Oreos. We really thought Dad lived off of these two things growing up!
28. Beatles, Eric Clapton, The Beach Boys, The Eagles....just a few of the things that were ALWAYS playing!
29. On Halloween, we would come home from trick or treating and dump out our candy on the floor. Dad would always take the MILKY WAYS, M&M's, red skittles and red starbursts. We always knew this would happen and didn't really mind....I don't think!
30. In middle school, I hated shopping. Don't ask me why, I just did! Dad would drop me off at the mall with his credit card and make me shop. If he did that now, he would be in big trouble!!!
31. When my friends called the house, Dad would say "Lauri's answering service!" if he answered the phone. Needless to say, I always tried to get it first!
32. When we were little, Dad would do this cheerleading move with us and flip us around his back. We thought it was the funnest thing ever!
33. Saturday morning homemade waffles with bacon bits. Yummy!!!
34. At our cousins house, we used to get big boxes, break them down and go sledding down the HUGE hill. So much fun! Dad would be the one to catch us at the bottom so we didn't go into the street! See...such a responsible Dad! :)
35. In elementary school, he would pick us up for lunch all the time and take us out! There was a subway shop (wish I could remember the name!) that we would always go to or we would go to Charleston's. The secretaries all knew Dad and expected to see him often!
36. When Jocelyn was about two weeks old, Dad came out to Virgnia to visit. It was Graham's first week back at work and I was so NERVOUS to be home! Dad came and helped SO MUCH! He would hold Jocelyn and get her to sleep and let me sleep! I woke up one time thinking my pillow was Jocelyn and I was squishing her! I freaked out, ran into the living room and found Dad and Jocelyn resting peacefully on the couch! We laugh about that now!
37. Faith is very important to Dad and he has always been an example to us!
38. Dad has also always taught us to be proud of our country and be grateful for our freedom! The bald eagle is one of his favorite things! We would always get him pictures or statues of bald eagles for presents! I can't imagine how many he has now!
39. Blue Bell ice cream...need I say more?!?!?!
40. The first time we took Dad to visit Washington D.C., we went to this really good Irish restaurant. We were walking out to the car to go to the hockey game and we saw a meter maid writing us a ticket!!! We ran over and tried to talk our way out of it. We didn't realize the street sweepers came through at six and you couldn't park on the street! Another officer came over and told her not to write us a ticket and he was glad we were visiting D.C.!!!
41. Dad got kicked out of more than one of John's hockey games in high school. It was always for yelling at the refs! This still makes me laugh! "Oh, Dad. Not again!"
42. Tulsa Oktoberfest! GOOD TIMES! The chicken dance!!!!
43. 1964 concerts! We actually really liked these!
44. When I was little, we used to dance in our living room all the time. I would always stand on Dad's feet and then he would dance. So funny.
45. Road trips!! Whenever we went on road trips, Dad would video tape parts of the drive! Haha. It makes me dizzy when I watch these now! He would also video tape the moon, the sunset, etc. etc.
46. Christmas mornings were the best! He would wake us up, video tape us waiting in the hallway and then running to look in our stockings. He was behind the video camera or the regular camera A LOT! Which is a blessing now b/c we have so many pictures to look back on!
47. I remember going to pick out my violin with him. He was so excited! Too bad it didn't last long with me. I got bored. John was able to use the same violin for years and I think Catherine used it too!
48. OH!! At hockey games, we could do a "time out" where we were allowed to chant the bad word with the crowd at the refs! Hilarious! We thought it was the coolest thing!
49. Jocelyn is now obsessed with band-aids!! When Dad came to visit, she had an "owie" and he bought her some cute band-aids. Now we have to have them in the house all the time. They make everything better!
50. John and I thought it was the BEST that Dad liked the same radio stations we liked when we were younger. What were they? 107.3 and 106.9? Is that right, Dad?
51. I remember one of our favorite nights was when we got to meet the Tulsa Oilers and get their signatures!!!! Another night, this pyscho spilled beer on John and on Dad's leather coat during the hockey game. Dad said something to him and the guy wanted to go outside and fight Dad. Crazy! I think we walked out with security that night!
52. Making nachos and having movie night! There were lots of weekend nights that John and I would stay home and hang out with our Dad!
53. I have been blessed with the best father and friend! I am SO grateful for you in my life, Dad, and I LOVE all the memories you have created for us! You are loved more than you will ever know and we MISS you tons!!!!!!!!!!! I hope you have a wonderful birthday and know that we are thinking about you!