My Dad is 80!

Today is my Dad’s LXXX ‘th (80) birthday party!  (Dad’s Birthday is Halloween, and he’s always joked that he is the family ghost.)  No, my Dad is not so old that he still counts with Roman Numerals; it’s more that I love Roman Numerals, and my Dad is the one that taught them to me.  Nothing beats the pure geometry and rules applied to this skill set that a true analytic, or others like me, could not enjoy.  Come on, what’s not to love about 138 being written as CXXXVIII?  And for help in falling asleep, just learn the basics of counting to 150.  You’ll never count sheep again!  Just don’t stumble on XLIV (44).

My Dad is an avid fisherman.  Avid in that he fishes once a year, but makes it worth the wait for the whole year, and he goes to Canada to fish for a week, angling for Pike, Muskies, and Walleye.  A few years ago he was awarded the prestigious “Master Angler” certification, landing a 40” beast, this on top of the earlier 38” feast from earlier in the day.

Most of my sporting skills were definitely inherited from my Dad.  Most notably: bowling, (though I have yet to bowl a 300 like he has), baseball (he taught me the pickoff move as a pitcher, which netted two successful attempts the first game I pitched with it as a young boy), softball (he taught me to always swing for the fences, which I still do), basketball (his 3 pointer distance was his best shot, and is mine too, though when he played, it was still called a long 2 point shot), poker (just give him your money up front, and don’t waste a night of aggravation), and ping pong (he taught me the reverse spinner and the looped slam).  On a side note, my girls are already mad at me for using those ping pong moves on them, even though they were rusty from 35 years of non-usage, the muscle memory reflexes came back quite quickly when serving it up against them last week after our recent ping pong purchase. 

I'm no competition for Dad on the water though, as I never did take a love to fishing, and when I did, I was much too impatient.  I am a true hunt/conquer type A kind of guy, and fishing seems perfect for the more plodding, and laid back type B kind of guys.  Not that there is anything wrong with that (one of my favorite episodes of Seinfeld); I just can’t get into it.

My Dad was adopted out of a Catholic orphanage as a young baby to the Fournier family of Bartlesville.  His Dad ran the Fournier Brothers tire store near downtown, but his Dad died when my Dad was only 12, so I never got to know him.  But, my Dad’s Mom was the original “old” Grandma, back when Grandma’s weren’t Grandma’s until they were at least 60+.  Strange now that that age doesn’t seem old at all. 

She loved us with all her heart, and I have nothing but incredible memories of my times with Grandma, and her sister Meda.  I could (and might) blog many chapters of my life and times with Meda, as she was my favorite Aunt, and made my life special in more ways than I can count.  What a blessing it was for my Dad to have been adopted into that family, as it was the basis for the heritage that I have today. 

My Dad worked for Phillips 66 his entire career.  I can’t imagine that.  Things like that just don’t happen in today’s world, and probably haven’t for the last 20+ years, but somehow my Dad was able to pull it off; amazing. 

Dad has been married to Mom for 56 years.  Yes, you read that right.  56 years . . . and counting!  I do hope and pray that they both live long enough to make it to at least 75 years of marriage; though I know they wouldn’t mind if their marriage ended early because of The Rapture.

Dad is a Christian, Mom is a Christian, and together, they raised their four boys scripturally in the nurture and admonition of our Lord Jesus; which is something else that I can thank my parents for, as that heritage was passed down to me, which was passed down to my daughters, which is being passed down to their children.  Nothing warms my heart more than seeing my grandchildren in church, singing songs, worshipping my Lord, and Ava already witnesses for Jesus (I’ll have to tell you the story about her witnessing to a little boy on the Chick-Fil-A playground when she was about 4, it was a memory for the ages.)

Dad had a stroke when he was 78; which was a reality check for me, but he has fully recovered, and shows no visible signs of damage, which we are all thankful for.  My Dad always has had an incredible amount of spunk, and though somewhat diminished due to aging, I’d bet anyone that once he got warmed up, that he could still hit 33% of his shots from the 20’ line, and would never hit less than 80% of his free throws!  I never saw Dad dunk, but seriously, how many white men do you know that can?  I can, but only when I lower the goal to 9’ 6”, so I guess I can say that I can dunk for a white man, but never at the official height of 10’.  Only in my Roman Numeral dreams.  I love you Dad, Happy Birthday!

Ava Corinne

Ava Corinne (5.75, will be 6 on Feb. 6), a.k.a. “Monster” is phonetically the most advanced, and always has been, as she was speaking words clearly to me and the amigo’s at 14 months, and carrying on intelligible conversations by age 2. 

Ava’s outgoing type A personality (and the volume of her voice) is one for the ages.  Using an inside voice merely means using a volume just a tad lower than shouting.  Ava literally does not know a stranger, does not know that she is not quite 6; and she is one of the most obedient, polite, and driven little girls that I have ever known.

Ava was pegged a ‘Monster’ by her Aunt Jackie at a very early age; as Ava’s behavior at the time, was, well, like a monster.  But for me, she has always been little miss perfect; seriously, ask anyone, she really is.  I just love the nickname Monster, so now I call her that as a term of affection. 

Stories that will be told about her travel adventures with Pappy are legendary.  From the “I’ll keep my hands in my pockets Pappy”, to “I have an idea”, to “Is ice cream a snack?”, to “Pappy, can I tell her what I want to eat?" (to order at Sonic); the memories of my travels with Ava are priceless.

I’ll blog about more of those stories specifically in later posts.  But, here is an example of an early one: While sitting on the ledge of the local QT, having her morning coffee while watching others get their coffee, this was a typical exchange with a complete stranger, I think first recorded when she was maybe 2½, certainly not much older than that, if at all.  “Hi, my name is Ava, what is your name?  Do you like coffee?  I like coffee.  What kind of coffee do you like?  This is my Pappy; he’s getting me a donut too.  We’re getting ready to go see Jose working.  I like going places with my Pappy.  Do you like donuts?  I like the purple donut the best.  What is your little girl’s name?  She is cute.  Does she like coffee too?  Why do you smell like smoke?  It’s not good to smoke.  Do you like my outfit?  My Pappy says I’m pretty.  Do you think I’m pretty?”

Also especially precious is the memory of her acting out as a Hollywood actress exiting from her limo for Jose, when she was barely 3!  Ava is our resident drama queen.  We have yet to find out if she will win a daytime Emmy, or go all the way for an Oscar.  Since daytime soaps are ending their runs though, we might not get to see Ava cry on cue during a daytime TV show; but will have to wait instead until they have a casting call for the remake of Steel Magnolia’s.

Ava’s looks are that of a classic southern Italian beauty (sans the dark skin); with gorgeous and huge dark brown eyes, long flowing dark hair, and a smile that will melt your heart.  Ava is going to be a heartbreaker for many young men in her future, just like her sister will be.

Some of my most fond and cherished times are when she goes out to eat with me.  Since she was a baby, she has loved her food.  Being Italian, ‘noodles’ are one of her favorite meals, though she can out eat me when it comes to Pizza.  And as mentioned earlier, the QT donuts will always be on her list of ‘must have’ foods.  Watching Ava eat warms your spirit, because you see someone truly enjoying one of life’s greatest pleasures.

Ava is very giving, generous, and appreciative.  She learned early in life how to manipulate a situation for her benefit, but she is anything but selfish.  She is quite the giver.  And when I see her line up her peanut M&M’s by color groups before consuming those miniature culinary treasures; I know she’s got part of me in her!  Actually, if you’re keeping track, she’s got 25% of my DNA, though certainly none of it is with her looks.  I love you Ava Corinne.     

Emma Jo

Emma’s full name is Emma Joelle (like Joe-L, not Jo-L-E).  But, because I am a member of NAP, (named after Emma), called the National Association of Pappy’s, rule 19, section 57, clearly states that it is a Pappy’s prerogative to change names of his grandchildren however it suits him best.  Thus, we have Emma Jo (like her Daddy Joe.)

Emma Jo (3.5), a.k.a. "The Mute or Raingirl".  My precious little sloth.  Not much is known yet of this fiery little (quite literally) granddaughter of mine, as she has slept through most of her life.  Her personality is still somewhat of an anomaly to me, and not completely defined.  It would not be a stretch for me to say that she is not going to have a type A personality.  Emma sleeps up to 12 hours a night, followed by a 3 hour nap each afternoon, that has often been reported stretching into a 4th hour.  Wow! This girl can sleep.

Emma loves to eat; mostly junk.  But, with as many carbs and empty calories as she consumes in a day, you’d think she’d look like all the other obese children of America do, (fat), but she is just the opposite, she is frail as a rail.
 
Emma is quite shy, extremely introverted, and rarely speaks to anyone (which is the polar opposite of her sister).  Dustin has nothing on Emma when it comes to the act of incessant repeating.  It works for her just as reliably as it did for him; thus the term Raingirl was coined.

Emma looks a lot like her Daddy, no denying that, she is a Franco Italian for sure.  Those deep brown eyes are killer, and combined with her light sandy brown hair and that southern Italy dark skin which tans as beautiful as someone from St. Tropez (though that is technically on the southern coast line of France), wow, look out boys, you’re going to be heartbroken!  You might even see a Miss America sash in her future, but of course, Emma must first embrace the dream of “world peace”.

Emma is super sweet, adorably cute, and as Robert Palmer sang in his 1988 mega-hit, she is “simply irresistible!” Every time I see her, she can’t escape me fast enough before I’m holding and kissing her (her record of squirming out of my grip though is an astonishingly fast .007 seconds), which is ‘faster than a flash Nini’.  Usually, most mere humans can get at least 1.3 seconds of affection and cuddling with our petite one, but when someone says she runs a 4.4  40, believe me, it’s not far off.  I love you Emma Jo.

Jared Henry

Jared Henry (7) a.k.a. “The Informer” has his birthday in my favorite month of the year (October), and his birthday is today.  Happy Birthday Jared!  You are my first to blog on J.

Jared’s sense of right and wrong is only black and white, with no visible shade of gray, as he always is the first to inform the closest person of the family if someone is out of line, or has done something wrong.  With this type of prophetic personality, Jared will one day make a great Judge, hopefully a conservative one.  And, since there is already an Attorney in the family, (Jan, his Mom); that vocation might not be out of reach for him. 

Jared is a talker, and a master negotiator.  As a young baby, he was quite the babbler, and those skills have carried on in his life thus far.  Put him in a room with cousin Ava, Aunt Jackie, Nini, and his Mom, and you might think that he would be overmatched to those other well-known and legendary chatterboxes.  Not so.  Jared would be able to hold his own against these other four females.  Something rare for a male indeed. 

Jared is technically my nephew.  But, he only has one set of living grandparents, and because he runs in the same circles as my other grandchildren, being in the same age group, and he lives locally too, I love him and his brother as two of my own grandchildren.  I will always count him and his brother as two of my six, thus explaining the math problem of the day for those of you that know me, and why this blog is called 6xPappy. 

Jared is naturally gifted as a leader, (he is a type A), and he is one of three anal-retentive children that I know (Ava and Will being the other two).  Since that is my dominant trait as well, it is quite easy to spot that characteristic in others. 

Jared excels in school, loves to be the ‘line leader’, is very outgoing, polite, and knows how to work a room with his extroverted personality.  That too is a great trait he inherited from his Mom, the original social butterfly, and from which Jared has perfected the skill as a young boy.

Jared loves to play sports, and currently excels with baseball and football; though his team lost a heartbreaker in the Super Bowl two weeks ago 12-6.  Jared ran for 400 yards (the official stats will probably show something closer to 50 yards), but you have to watch flag football in person to understand what all the extra running is for.

My recommendation though is for him to play basketball, as he towers over most children, and could end up being well over 6’ tall by the time he makes it to college.  Besides, I predict that Jared’s football career will come to a quick end the first time he gets tackled with the wind knocked out of his sails, as he is not known as being ‘the tough one’.  That title is reserved for his little brother Jack; a well-earned title indeed.  Jared is a good looking kid, definitely cut from the Cunningham cloth of good looking genes; tall, lean, good posture, and with great big beautiful sky blue eyes that will stare right through you.  I love you Jared Henry.