Introduction
Last night Craig was able to feel his growing baby girl move around for the first time. I watched his eyes light up like fireworks! His excitement was overwhelming. It honestly surprised me. It’s a neat feeling for sure, but I didn’t think that he would be as thrilled as he was. It made me realize again just how much a dad loves his daughter. Craig hasn’t been able to hold or snuggle this little girl yet, but his love for her already is tender, sincere and deep. It made me think of the love my dad has for me. I say I’m his favorite, and I’m quite sure that statement is true, but I do have two other sisters and I don’t want them to feel jipped…Regardless I know he loves me, and gosh I love him! It’s kind of fitting actually that he should be on my mind, since it was Father’s Day this past week… In honor of a belated Father’s Day, let me tell you about My Dad. I am the daughter of Paul Warnes. I want to share a little bit about the WHY’s I am proud to be his daughter, mixed with a few good stories that include skunks, bedtime monsters, motorcycle rides and much more!
I love my Dad’s humor.
CONTINUED
Dad is quiet but an absolutely friendly guy, it’s hard to leave a conversation with him without laughing at some point! Pair his humor with his willingness to reach out, and you have one fantastic human being. I remember as a kid, mom would always debate whether we really needed bananas, bread and milk from the store or not. It wasn’t a financial matter, it was a matter of needing to file a missing person’s report or not… Dad usually ‘had time’ to go to the store at 9:30pm Saturday night. Valley Market was less than 10 minutes away, and closed at 10pm. That wasn’t the problem either. The problem was he would go to the store, and even though it was closing time he wouldn’t get home until 10:30pm or later. So where did he go? The store! People flock to him, he is kind and reaches out to people, making them feel valued. He was late getting home because he gave his time and energy to give people value and love.
My dad is thoughtful.
When I was in high school he let me borrow his green GMC Jimmy for school each day. Oftentimes even though I had a job, I was not the best at making sure the gas tank was filled up. There would be days I would be panicking as I was running late, scrambling to leave the house, and still needed to make a stop at the gas station only to get in the car and find my dad had already filled the tank for me. It’s like he knew when I was in need without me saying anything out loud. There were many nights he would climb the staircase just to sit on my bed and have a heart to heart talk. It didn’t have to be a serious conversation, but it was always enough to let me know he loved me. My favorite part was when he would tuck me in so tightly I couldn’t move! I enjoyed this even has a college student. Dad was my best friend.
He Always Seems to Be in the Right Place, at the Right Time.
Someone would slide off the road, or get stuck in the snow, and there would be my dad, right there to help them in any way he could. The neighbor needed help in some way or another, and there my dad would be, right beside them without complaint. It’s like he has a sixth sense for service opportunities!
Two years ago there was a Utah man with dementia that had gone missing. Police & the family were asking for the public’s help in locating him. Notice the location was in UTAH. My dad lived in IDAHO. Dad was driving and happened to notice a car on the side of the road. He said it looked like it had been there for a while so he pulled over to check on its occupants. Inside he found an older man, obviously disoriented and speaking German. The car was out of gas, it was freezing outside, and there was no wallet, phone or medications in the vehicle. Dad helped the man out of the car and into his own truck to get him warmed up. As dad processed what to do next he realized he had just read an article about a man missing since the day before, and the resemblance was obvious.
He drove to the police station and explained the situation. I don’t think the officers believed him at first… come to find out, it was that man! That man had somehow driven himself from South Ogden up to Little Ole Grace Idaho- with no connection to the area! That man would have died. He was taken to the hospital, but I know dad was there in the right place, at the right time. This is not uncommon with my dad.
https://www.ksl.com/article/46195352/police-find-missing-south-ogden-man-with-dementia-in-idaho
Twelve things you didn’t know about my dad:
1- My dad is a snack stasher- Swedish fish, Hostess cupcakes, beef jerky, smarties, tapioca pudding, sunflower seeds, Reese’s, Kit Kats, Big Hunks, Almond Joys, Baby Ruth’s will often times be in his collection…
2- Ice Cream Sandwiches. Fat boy, skinny boy, regular size, whatever kind is on sale, he will stock up. Although don’t be surprised if he responds with, “Is that a fat joke?” or “What did you call me?” When you offer him a Fat Boy for dessert…
3- He almost always wears a hat! My mom always teases him about how many hats he has and if he REALLY needs ALL of them. So he purges, and then by the end of the week, he’s had 5 more retailers give him hats…
4- Loves to hang his arm out the window while driving, hence why he usually has one arm that is darker than the other…
5- Dad is an expert Mashed Potatoes maker, and a master at tuna melts & French toast- never, ever soggy!
6- Don’t let his size/stature fool you, he is extremely athletic. Soccer, baseball, basketball, tennis, bowling, and a great swimmer. Grandma said he was always walking around with a ball of some kind growing up- this is a trait he has passed on to our little Bridger boy.
I remember being in Junior High track and I had finally built up some leg muscle, we decided to race…Yeah in those 10 seconds I realized I will always be slower than my dad, especially on short sprints… He’s quick, don’t underestimate him…
7- He can do a back flip. Every time we would go to a hotel pool, he would show off his moves for us. I LOVED it.
8- Dad is one of the best people to watch a movie with, he will sit and giggle just like a kid. Secondhand Lions and Ant Man & the Wasp are a few of his favorites. You’d think Pride & Prejudice would be on this list for how often he watches it… but it’s really because it’s one of my mom’s favorite, and he loves her….
9- My dad thoroughly enjoys ‘sugar cereal’ as mom calls it. Dad would go buy a bag of Captain Crunch, Golden Puffs, Frosted Flakes or Apple Jacks then he would hide it in the pantry somewhere out of our reach… or so he thought… for two reasons:
1- Mom knew us kids had a weakness for sugar cereal, we could finish a brand new bag in one sitting, so sugar cereal was a ‘no-no’ item. She was a Nurse as well, so it may have had something to do with our health, and the health of our already sensitive teeth…
2- Dad wanted to be able to eat his own cereal. If we found it first, he never saw it again…
But the best part was if we didn’t know he had bought and hid a bag somewhere, we wouldn’t know to look for it. Only problem is more often than not, he would forget he had hidden something too! Pantry cleaning day would come around and we found all sorts of unopened surprises! BEST DAY EVER!
10- When mom would be close to delivery time, she would always be a bit concerned about who would be cooking while she was otherwise occupied. Dad always confidently responded, “We will be fine! I can cook! I can make hot dogs, hamburgers, frozen pizzas, burritos, corn dogs, cereal and breakfast. We will survive.” For some reason it never seemed to console her concern.
11- Dad had a piece of sheet metal dropped on a big toe, and that nail never grew back. Years later, he was stepped on during a basketball game and lost the other nail, lucky for him, this one grew back... This made it easy for me to ‘identify’ which dad was mine during activity days. (All the dad’s stood behind a curtain and we had to pick which foot was our dad’s)
12- I don’t know that there is anything my dad doesn’t know how to do. And if there is something, he will find a way to figure it out!
A few good stories:
About 8 years ago our family- Dad, Mom, Nate, Megan, Marina, Nyler, Craig & I were camping in Bear Lake, Idaho. One of my favorite places! Dad had a pinched Sciatic Nerve that was really making comfort difficult. Nighttime rolls around and he decided to sleep out on the hard ground, to the average person and myself, it sounds a bit uncomfortable but, I guess it felt better than sleeping on a plush cot. Early morning hours come around- like 2-3 AM and Craig and I hear a rustling outside our tent. Obviously concerned about our well-being, I mean it is called “BEAR Lake,” Craig volunteered as tribute to check out the scene. Almost the moment he unzipped the tent and stepped out, he swiftly jumped back in the tent and zipped the door back into place. The noise outside our tent involved two black and white creatures, with a tendency to spray a stench like scent to scare off threats. Yep. Two skunks were outside our tent fighting. We figured we were safe and we would just let them be. Then the realization kicked in. Dad was outside in that general area, sleeping on the ground in a sleeping bag, with no other type of shelter. Like two naughty kids, we giggled and figured he’d sleep through it. Morning came and dad reported those two skunks were indeed fighting, and it was a good thing he couldn’t move anyway because they were duking it out right next to his head! Thankfully they did not spray! Oh man the story would have been even better! I mean, even worse!
Another good one- My sisters used to sleep in the same room with their beds sitting side by side- with a small side table in-between. One night they got into bed, and after some time had gone by, Mom came wandering through the house looking for dad. None of us had seen him, so she headed back downstairs to check the next part of the house. 10 or 15 minutes passed by when Marina suddenly heard a growl come from under her bed. Like a smart girl scout she woke Megan up to check the situation out for her. Both girls were terrified, and mustered up all the courage they could gather to take a peek under the bed. You’ve heard plenty of stories about the boogie man under the bed! This was no laughing matter! Until they discovered their very own boogie monster under their bed…a big, man-like creature named dad.
Like a little kid, before the girls went to bed my full-grown dad snuck underneath a small twin bed, lying in wait to scare the girls when they got into bed. The only problem is he got tired of waiting for them to arrive, and literally fell asleep! Unfortunately for him, his snoring gave him away!
I have plenty of good memories of my dad, I shared two of our classic stories, but there are so many more I could share! Memories of motorcycle rides with him going over the dirt hills on Grandma’s road, hot air balloon rides with bubbles still popping in my hair (I had been in the tub when it landed in the field.), and snuggling in his bed while watching ONE SATURDAY MORNING cartoons while mom worked at the hospital, and the trips we made to Maverick afterwards where we each picked out a treat- and promised not to tell mom…Memories I will never forget!
I love my dad, he keeps me laughing, he keeps me smiling and he lets me know just how much he loves and cares about not only me, but also my little family. I was, and I am very spoiled. He is one of the most thoughtful people I have ever had the privilege of knowing. He does SO much good he will never be recognized for- and doesn’t want to be! I have enjoyed knowing my dad loves my mom. I watch the two of them together, and they make me laugh, but I have never doubted his love for her. I am SO SO lucky and grateful to have grown up in a home where my parents love, and respect one another!
He has such a pure heart, and is one of the hardest workers I have ever seen. Landscaping is NOT always an easy job, it is very physical and he never complains even on days where he works sunup, to hours after sundown. I’m proud to call him dad.
I hope one day I will be able to be more like him!
I love you dad!
-Mikenna
PS I really shouldn't forget to mention, he makes a killer batch of cookies- Snicker doodles, oatmeal chocolate chip, you name it he is a master baker at heart, and it doesn't stop there. Sometime try his peanut butter buddy bars- YUM! As Craig likes to say, "Life changing experience."
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