Fathers

Have I mentioned that this girl loves her daddy? I mean really, really loves him? Well, if I haven't, she does.

She calls him name every morning after I get her out of bed, just to see, by chance, that maybe she'll get lucky and he'll be home.

She reaches for him, even if she's in my arms, and says, "Hold you daddy, hold you."

She covers him with her special blanket. No one else gets to touch her blanket. But sure enough, if Joe's on the floor, he'll get covered with the special blanket.

If she's in her seat for dinner when Joe walks in the door she yells, "All done. All done." She practically makes the chair tip trying to get to him while strapped in. Even if I have barely put food in front of her, she wants nothing to do with it until she holds her daddy. And this is our food lover, so you know what he means to her if she's willing to ignore dinner for some hugs.

She makes him blush when she lays kiss after kiss on his lips in the middle of a store. It is so cute.

When she's hurt, she turns to him for comfort.

When she's being adorable, she looks for him to be sure he's watching.

When he's on the floor, she's either on him, laying against him, or climbing over him.

The other day when I took these pictures I was thinking about how special dads are. How they are irreplaceable. How they are someone that loves you always. And someone you will always love.

This same day Joe's parents drove into town from Utah for a visit. That night (Friday) Joe's dad had a stroke while here sleeping. Gwen had been having a rough night-something that hasn't happened since she was a baby. After hearing her 2 or 3 times before midnight I thought to myself, "What is going on with her?" She was up again at 12:00 am, and Joe's dad woke up from her cries.

That's when we knew he had a stroke. It was a blessing that Gwen was having a sleepless night. The earlier you know about a stroke the better. He may have slept clear until morning, but thankfully we knew within hours.

He's been at the hospital and is doing fair. Physically he's just the same. Mentally he's just the same. Unfortunately, the stroke affected the part of the brain that controls communication. Right now, he can not speak. He knows what he wants to say, but can't say it. He has improved from the mumbles we heard the night of the stroke. He can get out a few words of a sentence, so we can usually tell what it is he is trying to say. The same thing happens when he writes. A few words, but he can't write a sentence.

He can regain what he's lost. But we don't know when or how much. Hopefully we can bring him home in a few days, because like I said, physically, everything is perfectly normal.

Joe is really missing his dad and is have a tough time. He spent the day with him yesterday at the hospital and I know he is grateful that they were here when it happened. Joe knew right away what was wrong and even what kind of stroke he had and what it would affect. But, he's concerned and worried about his dad. We all are

Joe and his mom are with him again this morning. But as the weeks go by and Father's day approaches and you're thinking of your dad, if you could have an extra thought for Joe and his dad and family, I know it would help.