MPT #11: 8th grade lucky to have my dad

i'm obviously not 13 going on 14 in this first photo...but it is our last post before christmas so i thought i'd focus much of this post on how we celebrated xmas...specifically memories of my dad...today, december 18 is his birthday...he would have been 70. he died 4.5 years ago just after his 65th birthday. i had hoped to take him on a harbor cruise or at least out to dinner by the bay here in san diego where he could watch the parade of lights (boats decorated with lights that create a parade on the water) for his 65th but late planning didn't allow this so i always have regrets he never got to do that even though he was always just happy to spend time with us and didn't care the "what"...he was always my cheerleader and would literally shout out "hip-hip-hooRRAYYYY" type cheers with his fists in the air and a huge cheesy smile and i'd roll my eyes and be embarrassed but he was our advocate when we needed him and junior high was definitely a difficult time!

i forgot in seventh grade to write about being pulled into my teacher's office to hear my dad had been in a serious car accident right after dropping us off at school and he had broken his neck and was transported to a nearby hospital. he had some disease as a child so he always had a stiff neck but wearing a halo and going through the recovery was yet another example of his "many lives" he weathered with no complaints...

[i'm doing a bad job watching my 2.5 and 5-year-olds right now rushing to get this out...plus trying to work on xmas cards...so i'll hope to edit this post later and probably won't read yours until the middle of next week when i visit my mom and she can watch the kids...so i'll be brief...]

this next photo again shows my horrible feathered hair...i'm holding my little cousin ally i was telling you about last time...the one who is in her 20's now and engaged!
this next photo makes me laugh in part because i can tell i "tried" to wear make-up and my curly feathered hair and semi-formal set-up but the main reason i get a chuckle out of this photo is my mom was SO intimated my the woman who hosted these parties...her name was kay bayor and she was like bree on the desperate housewives...always put together with the perfectly created homemade items for any occasion...all details covered...my mom would always say she could never have this woman over to her house because she could never pull that off and i reminded her the lady probably enjoyed entertaining and having people over so i always strive to allow visitors even in the messiest of circumstances...
ok kids are taking over the computer so more later...i'll leave you another photo again not from 8th grade but with the xmas theme of me and my sister...

i'm recording my childhood a year every friday through MPT (mommy's piggytales)...thanks for joining me!