Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all the Dad's out there!

It is our first Father's Day without PaPa Hanson and we miss him so much. He was such a wonderful father to his 5 children. He truly was what a DAD is supposed to be and my life was forever enriched by knowing him.

I also visited Papa Bud's grave yesterday. It was decorated in Red, White and Blue. He would have liked that. I miss him so much and Father's Day is always harder knowing he isn't here to celebrate with.

My Dad, thank God, is still alive and well. He has had a rough 2011. A fire destroyed his home last year and things just don't seem to be getting any easier for him. I love him very much and would ask that you keep him in your prayers. I hope that my dad will turn to his heavenly Father and call out to Him during these rough times. My dad is a great guy with a love for his family like no other and his relationship with God has always been a private matter between him & God so I just keep praying that God will hear my dad's cries.

In Him are hearts rejoice, for we trust in His holy name. Psalm 33:21

The Bean is still Baking!

I am miserable! Being pregnant in triple degree heat is not my idea of a good time. It has been so HOT. Sunday it was 105. It cooled off to a chilly 92 by Monday but I am so over this heat!

The trip back to NC was hard. I have been back home now for a week and I am still trying to recover. I don't remember the other pregnancies hurting this bad. But I ache all the time. But the pain will be well worth it in a few more weeks!!!!

I finally unpacked yesterday and I decided to get the baby's bed ready. I didn't go out and get a crib this time. That is one good thing that comes with having your 5th baby----you pretty much know what are truly essential for the baby and what isn't. My mom got me a Graco Pack n Play and it will be perfect. It even has a mobile on it!

While I was home, my dear sweet sister Raini hosted me a family luncheon in honor of the baby. It was just immediate family and was really small but it was incredible the thought she put into it. We didn't think we were going to have anything after my mom broke her knee so I was really touched that my mom & Raini went thru the trouble of hosting a get together for me & the Bean.

I also managed to get Ashton to Build a Bear so she could make her baby sister a Bear. We had fun and Ashton is really starting to get excited about being a big sister!

A Father's Day to Reflect On

This Father's Day is going to be a hard one.

PawPaw Hanson, praise God, is back at his home. He stayed at Hospice for a week but he decided that he wanted to continue his Hospice care in the comfort of his own home, his own bed, his own chair. He has had a few bad days and eating has become harder to do but praise God, he is alive and he is at home and he will be cherished until God calls him home.

Papa Bud, gone from here but never far from my heart was a wonderful father figure to me.

My dad, whom I love very much, traveled a lot when I was a little girl. It was normal not to see him for weeks and months at a time. Papa Bud always made up for my dad's absence by being a DAD to me & Raini.

Whether it was fishing or grocery shopping, everything was fun with Papa Bud.

His sense of humor and dedication to me won me over from the very start. My earliest memories are of him holding me. He was my world.

My Dad and I get closer every year which is a blessing. I had a really hard time bonding with my Dad as a teen. I blamed him for not being there for me. It wasn't entirely his fault but as a teen I thought I knew everything. We are very close now and I can honestly say my Dad is one of my dearest friends.

But Papa Bud is set apart from every relationship in my life. He was, and is my gold star. Our bond was special and will be something I carry in my heart forever, until I see him again.

Yes, this Father's Day will be a hard one. A time of reflections, sadness and thankfulness for the wonderful men God has placed in my life.