Miracles

You know I reread the last post and thought very seriously about deleting it. I sounded deranged (which I probably am), whiney (which I definitely was) and bitter (which I've gotten over). But I'm going to leave it. It reminds me of the major crap that we've dealt with these past 6 weeks. And you know what? None of it matters - not even the rain last night, IN my friggin house (yes you read that right). Today was Dad's 71st birthday. When you stack all the piddly little problems we've had, they are trivialized by almost losing Dad. We've been given the gift of having him here with us, if only for a bit longer. It really doesn't sound like all that much until you realize that Dad has lived longer than ANY male in the history of his family. They've all died young of heart disease. Dad's a tough old coot, though. With the grace of God, he's hit another milestone - another birthday.

We surprised him with a great gift - at least I think it was pretty cool. One of my favorite things is gift giving. I LOVE picking out presents that are "just right" for the recipient. Tonight we gave Dad a combo DVD-VCR. Cool because his VCR was on death's door (Lord only knows how old it is) and also because he has never owned a DVD. Not long ago, when we took #1 son's PS2 over to watch the movie Miracle, Dad commented that the picture was noticeably better. Ding ding ding! We got him 4 DVDs to go with it - 2 Ronald Reagan tributes (perfect for a die hard Republican), Patton and one other old war movie. He LOVES those! It was great seeing him open his gifts!

I love my Dad with all my heart. He is one of the most terrific men on the planet. I'm serious. Sure, he can be a grumpy old man...and he defines crumudgeon at times. But no one is more loving and caring about friends and family. He's all bluster and bark, no bite. Only C. even comes close in my mind to Dad, which is why I finally got it right and married him. My parents have given us so much over the years, lent us so much money, too, that we could never hope to repay them. Which is the issue - you CAN'T repay them. They refuse to take any money back from us...EVER. So being able to give him a birthday gift that he is thrilled about is well worth it.

Tonight I count my blessings. The Lord has given me a gift, yet again, as He always does. He always looks out for us. The house, the yard, even stupid french class....it all means nothing. We have our health and our loved ones. La vie est tres bonne!