Thinking about dad, there are a few stories that come to mind.

1. If you watch the slide show, you will see that in most of the pictures, dad has a pocket saver and a pen in his shirt pocket. Over the years this changed to a black Daytimer and a pen. He always had to have a pocket in his shirts to carry his ‘stuff’. His daytimer was jokingly called, his Blackberry.
2. Dad was a meat and potatoes kind of guy. He wasn’t a fan of dinners that didn’t consist of meat/potatoes/vegetables. As kids, we looked forward to the nights when dad was not home for supper so that mom could make us macaroni and cheese.
3. We had so many great summer vacations as a family, with dad pulling our little trailer. It didn’t seem so little back then. Most vacations ended with a weekend in Banff at Tunnel Mountain campground.
4. For the last couple of years, after dad gave up driving, we had a standing Friday afternoon date. I would take him for groceries and he enjoyed these outings. Sometimes he would choose olives and smoked oysters, sometimes sardines and occasionally a pizza for his supper. These trips would not be complete without him commenting on my driving and parking ability. We would use his handicapped placard so I could park close to the store and every time he would ask, “Want me to limp so people don’t think we are cheating?” All part of his sense of humor.

We were so fortunate to have him in our lives for this long. There are too many memories for me to share, but just enough to make me smile every time I think of him.