Father's Day

Hello bloggers!

This is Father's Day eve and I shall use my forum to write a tribute to the amazing fathers in my life. First, my own Dad, Jerry Hall. What a great father I am blessed with. Dad didn't have the best example to go by, but he beat the odds and became a really good dad without great training. Some of my fondest memories growing up involve my Dad. He would quiz me hours on end on my times tables while he milked the cow. I vividly remember sitting on the hay behind him while he quizzed me. I can still hear the milk hitting the pan and then the milk hitting the milk and can smell the barn. My dad, after doing a full day of work and coming home to hours of farm work, still had the time to help me learn my math.
Dad was a strict parent in the sense that you couldn't get away with disobedience, but he's a big softie. I could always count on a hug or a wink when I was feeling down. He challenged us to excel and for that I am truly grateful. I am a very competitive person and that trait has served me well and I can thank Dad for a lot of that. I feel like I could easily have become much more complacent about mediocre if I hadn't been pushed. As I've aged and parented my own kids I really have a new appreciation for how great of a job Dad did with us kids. He's a wonderful grandpa too and I love him very much.

Another great father in my life is my father in law, Gene Dudley. He also didn't have a great role model to learn this art. He not only rose up from that challenge of his early childhood junk, but became a wonderful Dad. He loves his kids and he loves his in law kids. I absolutely LOVE how much he loves my kids and what a great grandpa he is to them. The "Attaboys" are legendary in our house. I think my kids must have those little papers scattered all over this house. He always finds reason to praise. His stories are awesome and he is always quick with a laugh. One of the famous "Dudley Folklore" is during year one of my Dudleyness. They were visiting us in Germany and we were playing Scrabble. Gene, notorious for thwarting your efforts toward a triple word, took one away from me where I was planning to put "Quack" and reap huge points. When he laid down his dumb word, screwing up my plan, I gave him a forehead smack. He blinked twice... and then let out a huge belly laugh. I knew I would fit in fine in this family. Gene, I thank you for welcoming me and for raising a son to be a good father. You are loved.

My hubby Bruce is another father who deserves mention in this blog. He has been the ying to my yang, the Beevis to my Butthead, the Bad Cop to my Good Cop and Vice Versa. We make a good team. I do pretty good with the mommy thing, but Bruce brings a whole new element to parenting that I lack. I don't need to bore you with the details, but suffice to say, God knew what he was doing when He paired us up. I feel like we are doing a pretty great job, I love my kids and I love my partner and that is a good thing.

Lastly, the Father who I must praise is my Father God. Without Him, none of these blessings I spoke of would be in existence. He has shown us all how to be a parent. He is the Way, the Truth and the Light. Thanks be to God. Happy Father's Day!

Dudster

Graduation declaration

This blog is about my middle born child's graduation. Trent, my second born manchild is graduating in exactly one week. What does this mean to me? Well, it means that I am preparing for his open house on this Saturday, for one. We Dudleys celebrate early and get it over with. We are having a pre party and getting things started for all the grads. That's really the easy part, if you can believe it. Feeding people is kinda easy for me. Getting my house ready? Eh, I'll make it happen. Not too stressed about the party.... other than one small piece.
I have had this thought in my head that I needed to get Trent's scrapbook done, like literally all year long I've been internally nagging myself. He was 14 in scrapbook years... not one page of high school had happened. I had some of the photos copied, had purchased the actual book and paraphernalia and had great plans of making it happen. It didn't happen. I had resigned myself to the fact that it wasn't going to and then, in a moment of weakness... I decided that I had to make it happen. That moment was on Sunday of this week.
Fast forward: It's almost done. I am waiting on photos from shutterfly from his Sophomore year XC that our buddy Brian took, but other than that, it's actually ok. I am happy with the result. Here's the thing: The scrapbook really doesn't matter one iota, I guess that is really a word, no little squiggly line appeared under it. So, yeah, it really doesn't matter, what does matter is the unsettledness that I have been feeling regarding my little Trentie graduating. It was underlying and so I wasn't addressing it. I think it manifested itself in this silly scrapbook. I am really happy about Trent's plans, he's going to Whitworth, which is where his brother is, so that makes me happy. He'll have his brother and also we know the coach and are really pleased with the whole deal. I am just not ready to let him go yet. I really thought that the second kid leaving was going to be easier, man I was wrong. He's not even leaving yet and I'm a mess. We've had a few of the award nights that the school has. Trent has been a recipient of all of them, which is cool, but also just dragging out this event. He received accolades from his track coach at that event. He was recognized a few times at the senior awards night for brains and athletics and received the "Coach Award" for XC at the senior sports award night. It was fun to watch him shine, but again, bittersweet for the mama and papa.

So, the last scrapbook page I did for my Trentie: I captured a pic of him running this early spring, before Track. It was him running a hill workout right in front of his high school and there was a rainbow. I put that pic on the page and below it put this verse: "When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth" At the top of the page I put "Go with God" I love it. It made me feel such a peace. I gave my angst and unsettledness and all of the junk to God. So glad that God is so faithful to me and meets me where I'm at time and time again. Of course Trent will be fine. Of course he'll go and do great things for the Kingdom, why do I fret? Sorry God, sorry that I, yet again, question and worry.