Bear

First of all, happy Father's Day to all the dads out there!!!

Poor Jeff had to be at the airport at 5AM this morning to catch a flight to St. Louis for the National Sheriff's Convention (hilarious) for his new job; so, unfortunately, he won't really get to celebrate his first FD.  We couldn't decide if this one "counted" for him anyway... But, thank you to my sweet parents and Aunt Delores & Uncle Richard who remembered him with "dad-to-be" cards.  Next year, we'll make a big deal of this day... By then, Baby C should be old enough to go hiking/fishing/canoeing/beer-drinking with him, right?!? ;) 

So, today, I'm celebrating with my daddy - the most wonderful ever!!  Last year, I wrote a more sentimental post about him here, and I still mean every single word of it... But, in the spirit of not repeating myself, I thought I'd take a little lighter approach this year and tell you about the latest role he'll be taking on in a few weeks - Grandpa or, even better, BEAR.

Dear Dad, we really need to take more pictures together. :)

Since my early high school years, I've called my dad (and for that matter, Jeff too, although he never really appreciated it or accepted it like my dad) BEAR.  I don't know how or why it got started, but I just love it.  It is a term of endearment from me.  And, when it become obvious that I would NOT be allowed to name a child Bear one day - both because Jeff would never allow it and because my friends Amanda and Davey had already claimed it - I decided this would be the perfect grandparent term.  For years, I half-joked that my dad would be Bear and my mom would be Girl Bear to our future children.

Well, soon enough, those "future children" (or at least one of them) became a reality; and, "Girl Bear" just didn't seem like a good title for a little boy to use.  But, Bear stuck.  No boring "Granddad" or "Pop" for my daddy... Just Bear.  My dad can totally rock a name like that!

Now, here's where the story gets funny...

Early in our pregnancy, my dad proudly announced to his poker buddies that his grandson would be calling him "Bear," at which they exploded in laughter.  Much to our surprise, the title Bear has a bit of an alternative definition.

According to urban dictionary (and my dad's "hip" friends), a "Bear" is:   

a term used by gay men to describe a husky, large man with a lot of body hair

Hmm... Like maybe someone like this?

(Insert picture of my dad in a bathing suit here)

He might be the epitome of "husky with a lot of body hair," but in a totally studly way!

Hahaha!  We thought this was quite possibly the funniest thing to ever happen in our family!

For a while, my dad completely renounced the name...  But, a few months ago, he took it back.  He's MAN enough to not care about those things... And, he'll be the best darn Bear there is!

Here's a recent gift from him to our baby boy.  (Secretly - or not, since I'm sharing it on the internet - I think this will be a favorite!)

Happy Father's Day Bear!!  You are all I could ask for and more in a dad and, most certainly, a grandpa!  I love you!