Happy Father's Day!

We have the best Dads in the whole world! We love you! I found this poem that expresses some of what we feel.













My Dad's Hands

By David Kettler

Bedtime came, we were settling down,

I was holding one of my lads.

As I grasped him so tight,


I saw a strange sight:


My hands. . .they looked like my dad's!


I remember them well, those old gnarled hooks,


there was always a cracked nail or two.


And thanks to a hammer that strayed from its mark,


his thumb was a beautiful blue!


They were rough,

I remember, incredibly tough,


as strong as a carpenter's vice.


But holding a scared little boy at night,


they seemed to me awfully nice!


The sight of those hands - how impressive it was


in the eyes of his little boy.


Other dads' hands were cleaner, it seemed


(the effects of their office employ).


I gave little thought in my formative years


of the reason for Dad's raspy mitts:


The love in the toil, the dirt and the oil,


rusty plumbing that gave those hands fits!


Thinking back, misty-eyed,


and thinking ahead, when one day my time is done.


The torch of love in my own wrinkled hands


will pass on to the hands of my son.


I don't mind the bruises, the scars here and there


or the hammer that just seemed to slip.


I want most of all when my son takes my hand,


to feel that love lies in the grip.



Does your Dad say this stuff, too?

All of ours do-even Rusty!

We sometimes call them Earl-isms.. in honor of the dad who can't say a single sentence without some fatherly wit thown in! Stacey swears she's keeping a list to publish...

but here are a few now..


What our Dads said..


Go ask your mother.

Were you raised in a barn?

You didn't beat me. I let you win.

Quit crying. It's only blood.

Don't you know any normal boys?

A little dirt never hurt anyone--just wipe it off.

Who said life was supposed to be fair?
The fair's in October.

You call that a haircut?

This will hurt me a lot more than it hurts you.
Do you think I am made of money?

Don't give me any of your lip, young lady.

You call that noise "music"?

We're not lost. I'm just not sure where we are.

Shake it off. It's only pain.

As long as you live under my roof,you'll live by my rules.

I'll tell you why. Because I said so. That's why.


What's so funny? Wipe that smile off your face.

If I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times.

You want something to do? I'll give you something to do.

Go tell your mother she wants you>


Eat it! It will grow hair on your chest!

You can want in one hand and spit in the other and see which one fills up first.

If your friend jumped off a bridge would you?


Stop crying or I'll give you a reason to cry.

What do you think this is, your birthday?


What do you think I am, a bank?


What part of NO don't you understand?

I don't care what other people are doing! I'm not everybody elses father!

You're not leaving my house dressed like that!

Didn't your teacher learn you anything?!



Rusty, Buddy, Earl- you're the BEST !


Rusty- you were Daddy- first to Justin & Kelley, then later to Sarah


A substitute Dad to many little angels in Jax



Next, Pop-Pop to Reilly, Laney, Ethan & Landon

Now Papa to another world of fatherless little ones.




I couldn't love you more or be more proud.