dad, to show you how much i love you, naturally, i've made you a list. you taught me the art of listing. now watch me put it to good use. i've had this tucked away in the back of a notebook for a couple of months, and now i finally get to break it out. hooray.
01. puts a slice of cheese on his apple pie.
02. paid for my braces and my wedding.
03. believes in the power of the email.
04. took my and sister and me to the midnight showing of lord of the rings on opening night. on a school night. and we even had finals the next day. i loved every early morning minute of it.
05. is a sucker for cloudy days, cottonwood trees, & chicago-style deep-dish.
06. gave us a puppy.
07. has seen every episode of gilligan's island.
08. is a good provider.
09. established movie night.
10. trusted us. he didn't ever say 'go do your homework.'
11. is the stocking-filler on christmas morning.
11 1/2. always puts magazines in mom's stocking. i love that.
12. fills his plate last at the dinner table.
13. can beat anyone at trivial pursuit.
14. bakes mom's birthday cake.
15. is good at his job.
16. drove us girls around so that we could look at the neighborhood christmas lights.
17. was always thankful when we gave him the same birthday present every year: pistachios and gummy orange slices.
18. taught us to follow the rules and be considerate of others.
19. is the best gift-giver in the world.
20. would spontaneously announce that he was taking us out to dinner. for no special reason.
21. took us fishing and camping.
22. likes sandwiches + malts.
23. helped me with my math homework.
24. let me drive his cars and listen to my music.
25. was with me the first time i went outside the u.s.
26. dreams of the simple, quiet, country life.
27. has a great laugh. the big ones usually include lots of knee-slapping and coughing.
28. is smart as a whip.
29. taught me all about college football.
30. built us a treehouse.
31. knows a lot about a lot of things.
32. gave me my love for a good story and old movies and musicals.
33. is a good person to have on your team.
34. likes to surprise.
35. took us to disneyworld and disneyland. and we had the time of our lives.
36. humors his girls and attends the annual christmas tree decorating + egg nog ceremony.
37. bought me a watch to celebrate the millenium.
38. i think could be the next robert osborne or tom shatel.
39. bleeds husker (go big) red.
40. has a special place in his heart for drag racing, the indy 500, & tex-mex.
41. gave us the original 'willy wonka' on vhs when i was six years old. and let us watch it over and over and over.
42. came to my piano recitals.
43. spent christmas on a beach in mexico (woohoo!), so that his girls could have a christmas to remember.
44. made sure that we saw the classics.. it's a wonderful life, the african queen, rear window, bye, bye, birdie, mister roberts, the great escape, father goose, singin' in the rain, the big country, bringing up baby, and the music man, etc.
45. always took us out to celebrate the first and last day of school.
46. helped me appreciate the value of a budget, allowance, chores, responsibilities, and a good nap.
47. disciplined me wisely when i was young. and i am forever grateful.
48. is a great person to have a book discussion with. especially if the book is harry potter.
49. loves to pass on what he remembers from his childhood.
50. wants to give his girls a taste of everything good.
dad, thanks for being so great. i love you.
