The Big 5O!

I have always thought of my dad as this young, hip, cool dude. In my head, he was never going to get old. He would always be, the dad that all my friends thought was cute (eeh). The dad that kicks my trash in all sports of any kind (annoying). The dad that loves all the same music and movies as I do. The dad that dresses cooler than my friends/boyfriends. The dad that eats every fattening thing in sight and never gains a pound. The dad that will only drive/ride something that should have been in "Fast and the Furious". And so on, and so on...

Well the fact of the matter is.... He has turned 50. He is over the hill. He has hit that mark where people start referring to you as "old" behind your back. You know it's true.

And as scary as that may be.... the funny truth of it all is that absolutely nothing has changed at all. Everything I listed before is still true. The man doesn't look a day over 35! And he still acts like he's 25! ;)

I think the lesson learned here is, don't let a stupid number, or the fear of getting older drag you down. Be the age you want to be. Keep a young mind, and the rest should follow. (Should we see how many more cheesy quotes I can bust out... let’s not)

One of the biggest goals in my life is to stay as youthful as my dad, no matter what happens, or where I go.  

Derek and I always take my dad out on a surprise birthday trip when we come out for the holidays. This time we went to the brand new Old Spaghetti Factory in Palm Springs. It was a first for all of us. The Old Spaghetti Factory is a tradition of mine and my dad’s. So we were thrilled to here there was a new one super close to our house.
After dinner we took him ice skating. He hadn't been in a lot of years. But, of course, he picked it right back up. With a little bit of my help... wink wink.

Yea, I dance while I skate.... no big deal.

The next day, we decided to celebrate again with the family. So, my mom, my sisters, and I did a bit of shopping and put together a really fun pasta bar. Italian food is my dad’s favorite, obviously.
We all had dinner together, and ate cake and ice cream. It was a really fun, mellow night, considering the fact that we literally got snowed in. 
The truth is, that I had originally planned a surprise party for him, and invited quite a bit of people. Didn't work out, since no one could drive up the hill to my mom's house. We made the best of it though.

We made two cakes, and did 25 on each. That was the best way we could think of to get 50 candles. I dont like to chat with candles ;) He blew them all out too! So proud!

I made him a "50 Years" album too. It has a page for every year of his life. I tried really hard to fill every page, but there are a few teen years that I to leave blank. I am hoping someday I will be able to scroung up some more old photos and finish it. I found this vintage album at a thrift store! My dad's favorite color is orange. I was so excited!! I love thrift stores!!

My favorite artist all through high school, and one of my dad's favorite songs... Don't make fun, I have grown a lot in the world of music, but I still stand by my Johnny boy ;)

California Christmas

Just a little montage of the first day we spent in Cali with the folks. Derek got me a new lens for christmas and this was the first I got to play with it.

Don't worry, I tried my best to save you from most of the meaningless, impulsive shooting.

Dad's birthday. Exactly half his age.

This baby

New sweater from the pops. Anthropologie has my heart.

Pretty good for fifty... huh?

His face hurts my heart.... in the best way.

Rocky discovered the best seat in the house.... buried in Tundra's fur!

Second best seat....

Can't tell what they want.....

After a yummy christmas dinner we decided to take the doggies for a moonlight stroll around Idyllwild.

Dad got a call from grandma who proceeded to sing Happy Birthday to him.... 3 times. She's so funny.

Love my Babs. Don't worry the strap on her face is not a muzzle. It is just to help my mom walk her. Consequence of a few previous incidents involving my mom being spun around on the ground and dragged down our old cul-de-sac. Funny story.

Later we had a seperate little christmas with just my dad, who(like always) went a little overboard with the presents. He likes to shop. I had to get it from somewhere.

This year he had his darling friend, Donna, wrap all his presents. They were ridiculous! Like the most gorgeous presents you've ever seen. Professional style. He calls her his little Martha Stewart. Makes sense now.....

So I have a little mini montage of some of the cute gifts she did.

Every tag matched every bag. Every ribbon matched every bag/box. It was perfection. I had to force myself not to keep everything.

I sort of themed my dads stocking this year. I just found this store at the Gateway called "Blickenstaffs". It is full of vintage candy and toys. So fun!! Plus my dad loves that kind of nostalgic stuff.