A Loving Dad

better known as Papa

Grandpa holding baby girl A few of us called this man a loving dad, some called him Jim, but most knew him as Papa. And what a Papa he was. I guess the love for kids runs in the family, my grandpa sure had it and it did not escape me. My sisters, my mom and my grandma had it too but this page is about loving dads, and one loving dad in particular, mine. He is no longer with us but I'm sure these photos show him as he would want to be remembered.

Below are Gramps and Myself

I was one of the luckiest boys in the neighborhood when I was growing up. Why, because my dad was waiting for me every day when I got home from school. He was waiting for me to play baseball with, or toss a football to or shoot some hoops with. Dad worked nights and slept while I was at school, when I got home he was all mine until supper. After dinner he went back to bed for a few hours while I did homework, chores, bath and bed.

We played a lot of one on one basketball. He would always let me keep the score close, that is what good dads do, right? We would play to 21 and when he ht 20 before me the only way he would win would be with his famous hook shot from the far corner of the court. Every once in a while this shot would drop the first time, but not very often. I usually had several more chances to score and possibly win the game.

My parents made sure we had a family vacation every summer. I can remember bits and pieces of every one of them. I remember Silver Dollar City and the caverns in Missouri. On a trip around the great lakes I got stuck in front of the door of the tent. My parents and two older sisters fit the tent just fine, leaving me to guard the door and get trampled over at every potty trip. Next year it was off to Oklahoma, Tennessee and thereabouts. This time we had a fold out camper trailer. One side folded out and made a bed for my parents, the other side was the perfect size bed for my sisters. I was lucky, I did not have to share, I had the floor all to myself. I was a year older and an even bigger target when nature called in the middle of the night.

man with book, two girls in lap and young boy looking on

grandpa reading to child with boy helping

Long ago the Houston Astrodome was new, state of the art. I got to see the Milwaukee Braves (my team) beat the Houston Astros (dads team). What a thrill for a little guy who had never seen a big league game before. Once, on a long drive somewhere between Florida and Iowa, my dad got mad at me. A few days earlier I started writing numbers in a notebook. I started with one and just kept going. Somewhere at around 984,368 my dad was fed up with all the wonderful scenery I was missing. I was told exactly how expensive this trip was and that I had better put down the paper and start enjoying it. I write parenting tips, about how to keep your kids busy and occupied while you are traveling. That is as long as you are not traveling with a loving dad like mine.

My sisters and I grew up and left home. We wasted no time in filling mom and dad's home with grandkids. Dad became Papa and has been ever since. The grandkids grew up and several of them provided more bouncy little babies to fill Papa's lap. When my kids were growing up I never had to worry about getting a baby sitter. I was also never sure if we were doing my parents a favor or if they were doing us a favor. If my wife and I had not been on a date in a while I would get a call something like this, "don't the two of you have something you want to do this weekend, you know, just the two of you." If I called wanting a place to leave the girls the call went like this, "Hi mom, are you guys busy Friday night? Bring them over, we'll be here.

A loving dad became a loving Papa and this page is full of his favorite people. Many of the little ones that gave Papa a smile from ear to ear, from morning till night, are pictured here.