A tribute to my dad!

 It is Father's Day on Sunday and I wanted to write a blog post about my dad. I do mention him in blog posts but I never really write about him. He will probably never read this, he knows that I blog but he just doesn't understand it and I don't even think he would know where to find my blog even though I have told him countless times. lol There are millions of reasons why I love my dad and I think he is the best, it's hard to know where to begin.

I didn't have much of a relationship with my dad until I turned about 10 years old. He was always working. He is such a hard worker. He was a milkman, delivering milk on a morning and then running his skip hire business during the day and on an evening he was always busy on the farm, building the house we eventually lived in. When I was about 10 years old I started going out collecting the milk money and in the skip wagons with him and we became much closer. Over the years we have got even closer, especially after my mam left and we moved just up the road from him almost 5 years ago!

He has always been there for me from the days when I was crying about not understanding my maths homework from school to the other week when he bought me a huge bag of tea bags because one day I had mentioned we had run out. He always seems to know what I need and when I need it. If something happens in my life he is the first person I ring whether it be for support or for him to say I am proud of you! Even though we see each other a couple of times a week at least we speak on the phone most nights. Since discovering Facebook and the local residents groups he has become such a gossip.

I have been there for my dad too and I think that is what has made us so close. When my mam left I was the person he came to, when he was selling up everything up north and moving to where we are now he asked my advice and I am there for him at least every few days when he needs telling how to do something on his computer. He has got better using a computer but there are some times I just takeover and do it for him as it's easier on both of us. He moved from doing his business accounts on paper to doing them on the computer and his account was so happy! lol He has recently got into online shopping and it is stressful! He hasn't got the hang of using trusted websites and my brother and I are always asking him are you sure you need to buy it from there.

My dad has always been good with money and in the past I wasn't. He always said I should save more and it's only over the last few years I have taken his advice. He lives by the motto when it comes to buying something "do you need it or do you just want it!". That backfired on him when he was thinking about buying a fancy car last year and my brother and I were saying to him do you need it or do you just want it! He just wanted it. hehehe 

My dad doesn't have many interests but you can guarantee if there is a football match on TV he will be watching it. He doesn't support one team and just loves watching football. We plan our lives around it, we know not to ring him when a match is on and defiantly not to take him away from the TV. It's one of the reason he loves Stu so much as it's the only person he can chat football with.

If something breaks I phone my dad and chances are that he knows how to fix it. He is amazing when it comes to any DIY. He mostly built my childhood home so there isn't much that he can't do. The only thing letting him down now is his knees, he can't kneel on the floor to do things like he used to but he is 76 years old and is pretty good shape compared to most other people his age. If we need a tool or most things DIY related we go and have a look around his workshop to find what we need.

What I did learn about my dad over the last few months is that he is a good gardener, he must get it from his dad, my Grandad. He has a greenhouse full of plants and gave me some of the tomato plants which so far are still doing well. I am so scared they will die and he will be disappointed. Eek!

If laughter is the best medicine, then my dad is a world class doctor. His sense of humour is legendary. He has this uncanny ability to turn any situation into a hilarious memory. Even in the worst situations he can calm me down by cracking a joke. Sometimes they are not always politically correct and probably would offend some people but that is just the way he his. He knows when to be on his best behaviour and knows when a joke is needed to lighten the mood.

My dad is 76 years old and we all are always saying when are you going to retire? For years we have been begging him to slow down and finally he is starting to listen. He is stepping back from his business and is making plans to have some breaks away. I don't think he will fully stop working until he physically can't work anymore. He just hasn't got it in him to just sit around and do nothing! Even now when he comes here for a visit he rarely sits down, he prefers standing or walking. He always likes to be on the go. It's exhausting watching him, I have said I would like to put a step counter on to see how many he does a day! I imagine it being triple what an average person does. lol

My dad isn't just a great dad, he is a fantastic grandad too! The girls adore him and love spending time with him. He is so proud of them both, Becky for being a carer and Ellie for training to be an electrician. He slips Becky the odd £10 note here and there and has started buying Ellie tools for when she is qualified. I think it's so funny, he randomly pulls a package out and you never know what it is. Most recently it was a magnetic wrist band which will keep all of her screws and metal things together.

I hope your dad is as great as mine and if he isn't I am sure it's his loss. Sending love and hugs to those who's dad's are no longer with you.