Bye Dad!

My dad's trip has come and gone! We had a blast and I'm so happy he came to visit. It was brought to my attention that the last time he visited Lyla was the same age as Max is now. I was explaining to my dad that he will notice Max probably isn't talking nearly as much as Lyla was at that age. And at that exact moment Max let out the word "grandpa" clear as day. Apparently Max was trying to prove me wrong. It was pretty funny. 

My dad wanted to take the kids fishing, so we headed to Wal-Mart to pick up some poles for the kiddos. I think my dad envisioned purchasing a legitimate fishing pole and really gearing up for a semi-professional fishing experience. Unfortunately for him, good ol' Wal-Mart was fully stocked with Barbie fishing poles and proved that my usually strong willed father has turned into such a push over grandpa! He let go of his original idea and gave into the commercialized version of fishing. We headed to the lake. Lyla and Max were definitely interested in the activity, but it was a true test of their attention span. We ended up catching only one fish. Max was mesmerized and touched it several times. Lyla, not so much. 

My dad and Lyla baked some brownies together. It was cute as he explained to Lyla it was a recipe my grandma likes to use. He complied with every single one of Lyla's requests to play Barbie. And his Barbie voices are surprisingly impressive!  He even agreed to watch Frozen and act out the scenes. 

My dad is a pretty low-maintenance house guest. He doesn't eat much, in fact his diet consists of 90% energy drinks. I didn't see him drink a glass of water the entire time he was here. And believe me, I expressed my deep concern for his health. He just told me to shush...imagine that. He is entirely a busy body. He always has been, but it's becoming increasingly more apparent as he gets older. I have the same bone in my own body, I can't sit still. I was very amused as he pulled apart our rusted grill and renewed it to working condition. He continued to hose off my entire back porch and it inspired some intense spring cleaning. He also took my dog under his wing during his visit, but maintained his claim that he is not a dog person. Okay, Dad...keep telling yourself that....

I was so proud of myself for avoiding the inevitable feelings of sadness I feel when my family leaves me to go home. I did this while keeping in mind that my mom would arrive only a few short hours after my dad's departure. I made it all the way to the airport, then I turned around to look at Lyla. Her lip was quivering. Big ol' tears rolling down her cheeks. Then she said "it's so hard to say goodbye" and it was game over for me. She is so right. I felt her sadness and it broke my heart. I think it even got my dad a little too.

I am so grateful for the relationship my dad has formed with his grandchildren. He has a true bond with both of them. I love it. I do wish we lived closer, but it makes these visits so much more valuable for me.  I'm also grateful for the relationship I have with my dad as an adult. We had a rough time for awhile. He wasn't very tolerant of the teenage version of Kaili. I'm glad we have moved past that because he really is one of the best humans. He is smart. He silently has a huge heart. His sense of humor is on my same wave length. And he doesn't annoy me. Yep. That's the best kind of human in my world. 

Enjoy the excessive amount of photos....