August Blog Challenge Day 3

Describe your relationship with your parents.

My parents are super-awesome.
They are my biggest source of support.

Just this week, Kate's car broke down in Seattle.  My dad rented a trailer, drove from Long Beach to Seattle, picked up Kate and her car and brought her back to the beach.  He spent the next two days fixing her car.  Yeah.  That kind of super-awesome.

My mom has always been a fun mom.  I can remember cleaning house on a Saturday and her saying, "It's a beautiful day, let's go on the boat."  And off we'd go.  She's this great combination of cute and tough.  She can set camp, build fires, (she's a pyro, really) and chop wood with the best of them. But she doesn't like water and would get the boys to carry her across the shallows to get into the boat.  Always with her hat on.  And her necklace that said, "Oh, shit!"

She's the quintessential grandma, with her tiny feet, her sunny yellow clothes and her funny hats.  She bakes cookies and knits things and dances to music.  She works hard to make people around her happy and she delights in the littlest things.  She loves all things cat.  Yellow is her favorite color, which makes sense, because she's like sunshine.  She makes everyone welcome.  Our house was always full of kids and people who came there to get a dose of her caring.  And some of her cookies.

Growing up, my dad was a state trooper.  The uniform, the gun, the car with the lights, the whole nine yards. I remember being so proud of him.  To this day, a uniform makes me feel safe.

When Dave was in the car wreck in 96 and they discovered his tumor, my parents were in Walla Walla for Christmas.  They had their motor home.  And they stayed.  For three months, through surgery and radiation.  They put their own lives on hold to be there to help me and Dave. My mom and Cindy ran everything.  They didn't say "Let me know if you need anything."  They figured out what needed to be done and just did it. That kind of dedication amazes me.

When Dave was dying, my dad was there.  He knew how to transfer Dave safely.  He would put Dave's arms around his neck and say, "Okay, give me a hug.  You taught me how to hug, you know." And Dave would smile.  My dad really stepped up those last weeks.  I couldn't have done it without him.  I know people say that, but physically, I could not have managed what dad did.  And emotionally, he helped keep me centered.

I remember him saying, "I used to think that some people did and some people didn't, and I'd be angry about that.  I've come to realize that some people can and some people can't.  For whatever reason, they just can't."  I've found so much peace in those words.

How do you say thank you for things like that?
For a childhood full of fishing and camping and water skiing?
For taking our friends on vacation with us?
For making our house a place all the kids could be?
For showing us honesty, loyalty and hard work?
For showing us dedication and persistence?
For sacrificing much so that we could pursue our dreams?

I don't know that there are words, but I am so thankful.