For Father's Day - All You Wanted to Know

Joining Kendra at Catholic All Year for the Answer Me This! linkup. I didn't know it existed, but it will likely break up a bit of the whole "I'm pregnant for another 20 weeks" thing.

1. What's the best thing about your dad? 

My dad is delightfully goofy. He can be serious, but he can also be completely ridiculous.

Case in point: On my wedding day, Dad and I were waiting in the back after everyone else had already processed in. The doors are shut, and they're just waiting for me to signal them to open the doors and actually get on with the business of getting married. Apparently Dad wanted to forestall any weepies, so he had a plan.

My dad had the same wallet from when he started dating my mother in 1985. By the time I was 15, the wallet was completely falling apart. He often would use a rubber band to hold it together. So, two Christmases before I got married, I gave him a new wallet. He continued to use the old one...until...

If you guessed that he swapped it out right before the wedding, and then showed me right before we started walking, you'd be right. I was giggling and excited and almost started crying from laughter. (So much for forestalling the weepies.) And the first toy he bought for the upcoming baby was a little hardware set, similar to the kinds of toys I played with when I was little.

2. If you've got kids, what's the best thing about THEIR dad? (If you don't, feel free to substitute your grandfather or another father figure.) 

I have one, solitary child whose face we haven't seen. (That's what happens when you're 20 weeks pregnant. The only pictures we have are remarkably creepy.) And this child's father is unfailingly patient, and also incredibly silly. Shane will be excellent at being patient when the stinker needs patience, and will also be ridiculous with the child and play and interact with the child wonderfully. I can't wait for the baby to get here so I can see Shane with his child.

3. What's the best advice your dad ever gave you? 

Don't stick with just the jobs that you fit every qualification for — also apply for jobs where you might only have some of the skills. Job listings are for the absolute ideal candidate, and they'll oftentimes hire someone who is a fit for the company over someone who has every single qualification but doesn't mesh well. (My dad owns a business.)

4. What's something you have in common with your dad?

We're both incredibly nerdy. Slightly different types of nerdy — I'm more on the fantasy-web-coding-traditional Catholic side of it, and he's on the sci fi-hardware-MacGuyvering-Matthew Kelly-Dynamic Catholic end. It still makes for fun conversations though.

5. What's the manliest thing you know how to do?

Um...I may have used Google to help me figure this out. I've...mowed the lawn? Checked the oil levels in my car? Refilled radiator fluid and antifreeze? Played video games? I don't know. Since Dad had all girls, we were just taught to do everything and to manage on our own. I think my favorite "manly" thing to do is grilling. I love to grill. Chicken? Pork? Steak? Bratwurst? Hot dogs? Hamburgers? I don't care, I'll grill it and then eat it. Yum.

6. Who is your favorite fictional dad?

Oh gosh. I have to pick? Um...I'm going to go with Pacha from The Emperor's New Groove. He's funny, down to earth, not an idiot (unlike the stereotype nowadays in the media everywhere), and he loves his kids and his wife. My favorite character in that movie is his wife, Chicha (such a sassy lady!), but Pacha is a close second. The relationship between Pacha and Chicha is so wonderful, and very solid. It's one of the most positive family situations I've ever seen in a Disney movie. 

You can find other people's answers over at Catholic All Year!