Father's Day

I didn’t want to post anything earlier in case the surprise would somehow get leaked, but I have to admit: Sunday was my favorite Father’s Day ever. I’m not great at giving gifts, but every once in awhile, I’ll come up with an idea that gets me so excited. That’s what happened this year with my dad’s Father’s Day present. Before I explain the gift, let me give you some background. We grew up with my dad regularly reading and telling us bedtime stories. He liked to make up stories about a dog he had when he was a little boy, a beagle named Buster. They didn’t have the dog for very long (something about his dad selling the dog for a case of beer...) but we always loved the outrageous stories. Anyway, I decided to take one of the stories he made up when we were kids and turn it into a children’s book. You can look at the finished product here

On Sunday before dinner, I had my dad sit down with the youngest grandkids around him (to whom he loves to read). I made him close his eyes and then placed the book in his hands. He seemed excited and touched and read the book to the girls (while making his own commentary like, “9 innings? That’s 3 innings too long for a little league game,” or “Cleats? We didn’t have cleats back then”). I loved it.