For Christmas my mom asked us to share our memories of our dad, although I am a bit late I am finally sharing my thoughts. As I started to write, I made the decision to list memories and decided on a goal of 100 memories. The memories are mine from my life with him and knowledge of him even now, almost most events that took place with him always included my mom (you really can't have one without the other). Members of my family may not agree on some of them, I recognize they are my interpretation of memories. The pictures are not the best copies but I wanted to share some. I hope it will help you get to know him a little better.
DADDY
1)He called me his princess
2)He said he loved watching my sister and I sleep, but he often could not tell who was who while we were asleep
3)He edited my writing and helped me get A's on my papers in high school
4)He wrote me letters every week while I was at Ricks College
5)He was home when I was 4 or 5 and I thought it was the coolest thing to have my dad home to be with during the day
6)He put up with me sassing him but not sassing my mom and washed my mouth out with soap for that one
7)He insisted that my bed was made every morning and picked me up from junior high one morning to go back and make my bed
8)He drove me to the high school one night when I insisted on going when I wanted to go even if there was only 10 minutes or so left in his TV show and I couldn't wait to the end
9)He watched Lawrence Welk every Saturday night and I started watching with him and enjoyed it
10)He visited Craig and I while we lived in Escondido, CA and was so excited to go visit Lawrence Welk Village with us
11)He sat by me during my piano practices to encouraged me to continue to practice a whole half hour
DADDY
1)He called me his princess
2)He said he loved watching my sister and I sleep, but he often could not tell who was who while we were asleep
3)He edited my writing and helped me get A's on my papers in high school
4)He wrote me letters every week while I was at Ricks College
5)He was home when I was 4 or 5 and I thought it was the coolest thing to have my dad home to be with during the day
6)He put up with me sassing him but not sassing my mom and washed my mouth out with soap for that one
7)He insisted that my bed was made every morning and picked me up from junior high one morning to go back and make my bed
8)He drove me to the high school one night when I insisted on going when I wanted to go even if there was only 10 minutes or so left in his TV show and I couldn't wait to the end
9)He watched Lawrence Welk every Saturday night and I started watching with him and enjoyed it
10)He visited Craig and I while we lived in Escondido, CA and was so excited to go visit Lawrence Welk Village with us
11)He sat by me during my piano practices to encouraged me to continue to practice a whole half hour
12)He had me work at sitting and standing up straight, even walking with a book on my head
13)He would walk our dog daily down to the river
14)He tried to have us have FHE every Monday night
15)He needlepointed and I have dish towels and pillow cases that he made for me; my favorite is a kitty pillowcase that I let Aimee use on her pillow at home
16)He hooked rugged a name rug for my relatives and several beautiful rugs in our home
17)He taught me how to hook rug and wanted to help me finish mine that took years but I insisted on completing it myself
18)He wasn't sure he wanted me to marry Craig because that meant I would be living far from home in California not Idaho, but he came to know it was a good thing
19)His smile makes his right eye almost completely disappear
20)He loved and honored his mother
21)He had us visit her in Salt Lake often, sometimes we would drive down just for the day
22)He let me take a picture of him and Anthony when Anth was about 1 and it is one of my favorite pictures of my dad
23)He died before I got to say goodbye because I did not understand how sick he was
24)He had an almost photographic memory and I tell Anthony that is one of the qualities he got from his grandfather
25)He would write notes of thanks and encouragement and praise to his students and their parents
26)He made a candy wreath of butterscotch and cinnamon candies and a coat hanger every year for his class and shared the candies with his class
27)He would work at his school sometimes on Saturday's and let Katherine and I go with him and then we would sneak into the gym to jump on the trampoline
28)He gardened
29)He made me rake up the grass clippings after I mowed the lawn so it would look neater and often helped me because I did not want to do it
30)He washed the Sunday dishes always so Mom could have a day of rest
31)He had us drink orange juice and eat cinnamon rolls on Christmas mornings before opening presents so we would get something nutritious in us before eating all the candy in our stockings
32)He loved black licorice
33)He would help my mom can and thought there was nothing more beautiful than a pantry full of jars and jars of home canned fruit
34)He had us bike ride as a family almost every night during the summer and we would stop at friends often to talk in their front yards
35)He liked to go for Sunday afternoon drives
36)He drove us to the cheese factory in Star Valley on Conference Sundays, while we listened to conference, and sampled cheese and ate hamburgers there in between sessions
37)He took us to Palisades Lake for camping
38)He took us to Yellowstone Park probably every summer growing up
39)He took me to Disneyland and the Pacific Ocean for my first time
40)He had us often cut our vacations short because he wanted to get home quickly
41)He had me learn how to iron by ironing pillowcases first
42)He would not let the dishes drip dry and if I insisted on that he would dry the dishes and put them away for me so the counter would be cleared
43)He supported my mom greatly when my brother Greg died
44)He was often home with Katherine and I during the week the summer Curtis was in the hospital in Salt Lake City
45)He did not know how to fix things like dripping sinks and let my mom do it
46)He had a nice singing voice and would ask Katherine to play the piano for him while he sang, she was the better player
47)He wanted “How Great Thou Art” sung at his funeral by my mom's cousin
48)He would order liver and onions when we would go out for dinner
49)He would let me order a hamburger every time we would go out to eat but would encourage me to choose something else
50)He payed for a flight to Idaho from California for me and Anthony one fall so we could visit for a week with him and mom
51)He and mom helped with our home down payment to buy our first home
52)He made sure there was either cherry cordials or orange sticks in our stockings every Christmas
53)He would call his students' parents to share good things about their kids
54)He would be the first one in the living room to turn on the Christmas tree lights for us but would stay for an extra moment to ooh and ahhh over the presents before letting us in
55)He would listen to classical music on the stereo or radio regularly
56)He loved going to musicals and took us to see Sound of Music in Salt Lake City
57)He would take us to a theater in Idaho Falls on Saturday's that only showed musicals when I was in high school
58)He would take us to the same pizza place over and over again and make us order a salad to eat before we could eat the pizza so we would have something a little healthier than just pizza
59)He would stay up late and wait for me to come home from dates and flick the light on the porch if I stayed in the car or on the porch a little too long kissing and talking
60)He and mom would bring me potatoes from home to supplement my food at Ricks College
61)He would send Cox's honey to his sister and mom and us (when we had left home) every year for Christmas – creamed honey
62)He took square dancing classes with my mom
63)He took our family to visit my mom's parents almost every Sunday afternoon
64)He got really sick and depressed one year I was in high school
65)He gave me or our family a book every year for Christmas, often it was a treasured book from his childhood
66)He saved my oatmeal mush for me to eat for dinner one day when I refused to eat if for breakfast
67)He helped my mom cut lilacs and peonies to decorate family graves every Memorial Day
68)He receives messages from me through my prayers to Heavenly Father and me asking Heavenly Father to pass the message on
69)He knew his great granddaughter Zoe before she came to this earth
70)He wore a bathrobe instead of just pajama pants
71)He still shaved with shaving cream and a razor
72)He had toenails that were hard and long and grew fast
73)He always let me know how important I was to him
74)He often would work along side you at a project to help
75)He had Saturday chores just like the rest of us, often dusting
76)He supported “Spud Day” strongly, we always went to the carnival and parade in Shelley
77)He took us to his aunt and uncle's home outside of Idaho Falls where they had a mint farm
78)He took us to a farm (don't know if it was a relative or family friend) that had baby pigs, it was cool to see them
79)He was very frugal
80)He always supported my mom and her family reunion on the farm every 4th of July
81)He took us to Heise Hot Springs in the winter where he soaked in the hot water pools and we would jump back and forth between the hot pools and the cool pool
82)He took us to Downey where they had the first water slide I had ever been on
83)He took us camping at Lava where I jumped from the high platforms in the Olympic size pool for the first time
84)He took me to a Daddy/Daughter Church activity, where we had our pictures taken. Dad wore a sombrero on and me some funky striped poncho. I really only remember it because of the pictures.
85)He encouraged us to sing in the ward choir and so it was my first introduction to singing in a ward choir and have done so several times since.
86)He waited until he was in his 40's or 50's to get his patriarchal blessing partly because he was nervous about what it would say, but loved it and read it often after that.
87)He took us fishing at Warm River
88)He had us float down the river at Island Park on rafts
89)He took us to Granite Hot Springs in Wyoming camping
90)He let me hammer a piece of wood into the apple tree to sit on while I read my books.
91)He was a loving grandfather.
92)He would have adored Aimee
93)He enjoyed watching the Red Skeleton show and I watched it with him
94)He organized his mom's 80th birthday party
95)He did not like clutter
96)He gave me my first typewriter for my high school graduation
97)He gave me a pearl necklace
98)He gave me real ruby earrings
99)He was the best and I miss him and love him
100)He was my daddy (not father, dad but daddy)
13)He would walk our dog daily down to the river
14)He tried to have us have FHE every Monday night
15)He needlepointed and I have dish towels and pillow cases that he made for me; my favorite is a kitty pillowcase that I let Aimee use on her pillow at home
16)He hooked rugged a name rug for my relatives and several beautiful rugs in our home
17)He taught me how to hook rug and wanted to help me finish mine that took years but I insisted on completing it myself
18)He wasn't sure he wanted me to marry Craig because that meant I would be living far from home in California not Idaho, but he came to know it was a good thing
19)His smile makes his right eye almost completely disappear
20)He loved and honored his mother
21)He had us visit her in Salt Lake often, sometimes we would drive down just for the day
22)He let me take a picture of him and Anthony when Anth was about 1 and it is one of my favorite pictures of my dad
23)He died before I got to say goodbye because I did not understand how sick he was
24)He had an almost photographic memory and I tell Anthony that is one of the qualities he got from his grandfather
25)He would write notes of thanks and encouragement and praise to his students and their parents
26)He made a candy wreath of butterscotch and cinnamon candies and a coat hanger every year for his class and shared the candies with his class
27)He would work at his school sometimes on Saturday's and let Katherine and I go with him and then we would sneak into the gym to jump on the trampoline
28)He gardened
29)He made me rake up the grass clippings after I mowed the lawn so it would look neater and often helped me because I did not want to do it
30)He washed the Sunday dishes always so Mom could have a day of rest
31)He had us drink orange juice and eat cinnamon rolls on Christmas mornings before opening presents so we would get something nutritious in us before eating all the candy in our stockings
32)He loved black licorice
33)He would help my mom can and thought there was nothing more beautiful than a pantry full of jars and jars of home canned fruit
34)He had us bike ride as a family almost every night during the summer and we would stop at friends often to talk in their front yards
35)He liked to go for Sunday afternoon drives
36)He drove us to the cheese factory in Star Valley on Conference Sundays, while we listened to conference, and sampled cheese and ate hamburgers there in between sessions
37)He took us to Palisades Lake for camping
38)He took us to Yellowstone Park probably every summer growing up
39)He took me to Disneyland and the Pacific Ocean for my first time
40)He had us often cut our vacations short because he wanted to get home quickly
41)He had me learn how to iron by ironing pillowcases first
42)He would not let the dishes drip dry and if I insisted on that he would dry the dishes and put them away for me so the counter would be cleared
43)He supported my mom greatly when my brother Greg died
44)He was often home with Katherine and I during the week the summer Curtis was in the hospital in Salt Lake City
45)He did not know how to fix things like dripping sinks and let my mom do it
46)He had a nice singing voice and would ask Katherine to play the piano for him while he sang, she was the better player
47)He wanted “How Great Thou Art” sung at his funeral by my mom's cousin
48)He would order liver and onions when we would go out for dinner
49)He would let me order a hamburger every time we would go out to eat but would encourage me to choose something else
50)He payed for a flight to Idaho from California for me and Anthony one fall so we could visit for a week with him and mom
51)He and mom helped with our home down payment to buy our first home
52)He made sure there was either cherry cordials or orange sticks in our stockings every Christmas
53)He would call his students' parents to share good things about their kids
54)He would be the first one in the living room to turn on the Christmas tree lights for us but would stay for an extra moment to ooh and ahhh over the presents before letting us in
55)He would listen to classical music on the stereo or radio regularly
56)He loved going to musicals and took us to see Sound of Music in Salt Lake City
57)He would take us to a theater in Idaho Falls on Saturday's that only showed musicals when I was in high school
58)He would take us to the same pizza place over and over again and make us order a salad to eat before we could eat the pizza so we would have something a little healthier than just pizza
59)He would stay up late and wait for me to come home from dates and flick the light on the porch if I stayed in the car or on the porch a little too long kissing and talking
60)He and mom would bring me potatoes from home to supplement my food at Ricks College
61)He would send Cox's honey to his sister and mom and us (when we had left home) every year for Christmas – creamed honey
62)He took square dancing classes with my mom
63)He took our family to visit my mom's parents almost every Sunday afternoon
64)He got really sick and depressed one year I was in high school
65)He gave me or our family a book every year for Christmas, often it was a treasured book from his childhood
66)He saved my oatmeal mush for me to eat for dinner one day when I refused to eat if for breakfast
67)He helped my mom cut lilacs and peonies to decorate family graves every Memorial Day
68)He receives messages from me through my prayers to Heavenly Father and me asking Heavenly Father to pass the message on
69)He knew his great granddaughter Zoe before she came to this earth
70)He wore a bathrobe instead of just pajama pants
71)He still shaved with shaving cream and a razor
72)He had toenails that were hard and long and grew fast
73)He always let me know how important I was to him
74)He often would work along side you at a project to help
75)He had Saturday chores just like the rest of us, often dusting
76)He supported “Spud Day” strongly, we always went to the carnival and parade in Shelley
77)He took us to his aunt and uncle's home outside of Idaho Falls where they had a mint farm
78)He took us to a farm (don't know if it was a relative or family friend) that had baby pigs, it was cool to see them
79)He was very frugal
80)He always supported my mom and her family reunion on the farm every 4th of July
81)He took us to Heise Hot Springs in the winter where he soaked in the hot water pools and we would jump back and forth between the hot pools and the cool pool
82)He took us to Downey where they had the first water slide I had ever been on
83)He took us camping at Lava where I jumped from the high platforms in the Olympic size pool for the first time
84)He took me to a Daddy/Daughter Church activity, where we had our pictures taken. Dad wore a sombrero on and me some funky striped poncho. I really only remember it because of the pictures.
85)He encouraged us to sing in the ward choir and so it was my first introduction to singing in a ward choir and have done so several times since.
86)He waited until he was in his 40's or 50's to get his patriarchal blessing partly because he was nervous about what it would say, but loved it and read it often after that.
87)He took us fishing at Warm River
88)He had us float down the river at Island Park on rafts
89)He took us to Granite Hot Springs in Wyoming camping
90)He let me hammer a piece of wood into the apple tree to sit on while I read my books.
91)He was a loving grandfather.
92)He would have adored Aimee
93)He enjoyed watching the Red Skeleton show and I watched it with him
94)He organized his mom's 80th birthday party
95)He did not like clutter
96)He gave me my first typewriter for my high school graduation
97)He gave me a pearl necklace
98)He gave me real ruby earrings
99)He was the best and I miss him and love him
100)He was my daddy (not father, dad but daddy)
6 comments:
15. i always loved that pillow case.
19. i have a squinty eye too.
31. one of my favorite traditions.
69/92. i like to think that maybe he knew me too.
81. i don't think i realized Hi-C was spelled Heise, do you know that means hot in German? (pronounced as hi-suh)
82. i know a girl from downey.
87. he made you fish? did you clean your own fish?
I loved reading this, Ellen! Some of the things sound familiar from what my mom has told us. The pictures were fun to see too. I loved it all, thanks for sharing!
The pictures of Mom look a lot like you, Aimee. Thanks, Mom, for sharing.
Ellen,
I loved reading this. It's so neat to hear what you remember about your dad. It sounds like he was such a special man!
It made my day to read such wonderful remarks about a (and by) wonderful people.
Jolie
Coco, you ole hound you!
this is so wonderful! what a sweet tribute!
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