facebook twitter instagram bloglovin
 photo toppost.png

Jun 16, 2020

Grateful Heart Monday // The Dad Edition

it feels fitting to talk about my dad today on this grateful heart monday.  typically, i'll list some things i'm grateful for in these posts, but considering that yesterday was father's day, this feels right.

i've always been a daddy's girl.  my mom and i are super close as well, but i've always been really close with my dad.  when i was little, we used to watch flyers games together and split 5th avenue bars and go midnight mini golfing at the beach.  he's always been there for me, always helped me with homework (he's pretty much the reason i aced every spelling test i ever had), and always been a total goofball.

i've shared here and there about his journey over the past year.  last may, he was diagnosed with lung cancer.  he's never touched a cigarette in his life and was only 49 years old at the time, so that diagnosis rocked our world.  fortunately, by the grace of god, he's been able to be treated at the university of pennsylvania by one of the best oncologists in the nation, and he has a rare genetic mutation in his cancer that has allowed him to be treated by cutting edge targeted therapies.  a year later, he's doing well, (despite a scare these past few weeks and a change of meds), and we're still praising god and praying for total healing.

this past year has changed my dad, as any cancer diagnosis changes a person.  i've watched him cling to jesus, in a much more vocal way, than i've ever witnessed before.  he's become a prayer warrior and has led our family to the cross over and over.  he's always been a man of faith, serving at our church in many capacities, one of which was as a small group leader in our kids ministry, but this year has elevated that faith.

his shirt says it all:  he really is powered by optimism (and jesus!).  he has had every right to be depressed or angry this past year and yet i've heard the words "it's an awesome ride" come out of his mouth more times than i can even count.  his trust and hope is in christ jesus, and he completely embodies romans 12:12 as he is joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer.

see?  goofball.  when he turned 50 last november, we threw him a big surprise party, and a friend even had these shirts made up.  that hat was one of the gifts he received and you can bet he wore it to teach the bible story the next time he was scheduled in kids ministry!

he's also a mini golf champ.  when we would go to the beach as a family, he'd always take us "midnight golfing" (which really was probably more like 9 or 10 but felt super late), and then out for slushies afterward.  this guy taught me how to mini golf and still kicks my butt every time we play.  last summer, just in the month of june, we mini golfed a lot and he got a hole-in-one on almost every prize hole he came across.

this last photo was from yesterday, right before we headed out to ride 17 miles on our bikes.  my dad loves biking and has committed to riding the philadelphia ride to conquer cancer, a 150-mile two-day bike ride that is coming up in october.  he's in better shape than i am.  you'd never guess that a year ago, he was basically functioning on one lung, with cancer that had spread to his lymph nodes, spine, and even his brain.

we're so blessed that his story has been what it is.  lots of people can't say the same.  and i'm incredibly blessed to call this guy my dad.  i can't imagine someone more selfless, caring, optimistic, faithful, and loving.  he supports our family and brings joy to our every day in ways he might not even realize.  he's a doer, he gets things done, he sees needs and meets them.  i know that on father's day it's typical to say that you have the best dad, but i really really do mean it.

as usual, i'm linking up with ember grey for grateful heart monday! emily runs the grateful heart link-up every monday, and it's open all week…i encourage you to go check it out, read some of the other posts, and consider participating!

49 comments:

  1. (( HUG )) What a sweet post, Bets :) Your dad sounds like such a GOOD man and dad!!! (And, whoa, are you his twin or what?!?!?!) Praying for complete healing!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. thanks em!! he is such a fantastic guy…and yes! i definitely take after him…and that pic from our ride yesterday is kinda crazy how much we look alike!
    haha…but the funny thing is that i get mistaken for my mom allll the time. like every day. i'm not exaggerating. haha

    ReplyDelete
  3. You have your father's smile, I too am a daddy's girl x

    ReplyDelete
  4. Awe, that's sweet…dads & daughters have special relationships!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Aww, Dads are the best! Hope he had a fantastic Father's Day! <3

    ReplyDelete
  6. What a beautiful post! Thank God for your dad doing so well and for his foundation in Jesus. How inspiring to everyone who knows him or his story, no doubt. Happy Father's Day - I'm sure yesterday's hugs were particularly special!!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Amen…yes, yesterday was definitely particularly special. He is such an inspiration and a blessing to be around!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thanks for sharing your story!!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. I am so glad your dad is doing better. Thank you for sharing your story.

    ReplyDelete
  10. thanks for stopping by to read it! :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Great post! lol you two look so alike! He seems like a cool dad. :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. How sweet, thanks for sharing the story!

    ReplyDelete
  13. i love that motto! im going to try to start my days with a grateful heart :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. thank so much logan…we're so blessed that he is doing so well

    ReplyDelete
  15. it will change your perspective, i promise! :)

    ReplyDelete
  16. thanks for stopping by and reading! :)

    ReplyDelete
  17. we do! he is so cool…i'm a lucky gal :)

    ReplyDelete
  18. Your dad sounds like a great man! And very strong for everything he has been through!

    ReplyDelete
  19. He sounds like a great guy! You guys have the exact same smile!

    ReplyDelete
  20. I love this post. Such a sweet post about your dad and inspiring, I might add. I can identify, but it was my mom who had cancer and overcame it. -Jess L

    ReplyDelete
  21. Daddy's Girls are the best kind of girls! Love this! I wish I had more recent pictures of my dad and I!

    ReplyDelete
  22. So sweet! How wonderful to have such a great relationship with your dad - it's too cute that you have the exact same smile!!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Cheers to awesome dads everywhere!

    ReplyDelete
  24. amen to that! where would we be without them? :)

    ReplyDelete
  25. awe thanks! yeah, i love that we're so close :)

    ReplyDelete
  26. he is such a great guy! i get a lot from him, including the smile :)

    ReplyDelete
  27. he is an awesome man, and really is the picture of strength! he's such an inspiration!

    ReplyDelete
  28. Such a sweet post! You guys have such a fabulous relationship. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  29. Trisha Sheflo BrantinghamJune 17, 2020 at 1:27 PM

    What a great dad! You look so much like him! You both have the same great smile!

    ReplyDelete
  30. aww, that's such a sweet little tribute to your dad! and that's really great y'all have an awesome relationship :)

    ReplyDelete
  31. So sweet! He seems like an awesome dad!

    ReplyDelete
  32. I've been loving all of these Father's Day posts!! <3

    ReplyDelete
  33. Wow, you are blessed to have such a wonderful Dad! I'll be keeping your family in my prayers!

    ReplyDelete
  34. Awww, this is such a lovely tribute to your father! So glad he pulled through the cancer scare.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Such a sweet tribute to your dad. I love the pictures of the two of you.

    ReplyDelete
  36. thanks so much! he's an awesome guy :)

    ReplyDelete
  37. thanks so much! he's not out of the woods yet, and still battling, but we're blessed that he's done as well as he has!

    ReplyDelete
  38. i certainly am! thanks so much for the prayers! <3

    ReplyDelete
  39. me too! so fun to see how we all love our dads!

    ReplyDelete
  40. thanks so much Laura! i'm so blessed to be so close to him!

    ReplyDelete
  41. thanks! its funny to see how alike we look in some of these photos...especially since i get mistaken for my mom almost daily!

    ReplyDelete
  42. thanks so much! he's such a great guy :)

    ReplyDelete
  43. they so are! i need to take more...these photos span over the past year or so!

    ReplyDelete
  44. thanks so much...so inspiring to hear the stories of other survivors...that's been one of the biggest comforts to me throughout this journey...so glad your mom overcame!

    ReplyDelete

Hi! Thanks for reading! I read every comment posted here. Your thoughts are valuable to me! Thanks for taking the time to contribute!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
 photo envye.jpg
envye blogger theme