Happy Birthday Dad!

This picture is of me and my dad. I wish I had some pictures of us when we were younger that I could scan up here.
My dad was born on March 23, 1956. He is fifty-five years old tomorrow. :) Haha, now the whole world knows dad! I love you!
When I was a little girl my dad was my hero, wait a minute, he still is! I remember being so excited to see him when he got off work. I always tell him that my favorite time with him would be when we are driving down the road just me and him. Listening to Garth Brooks, "Chains" and "Timber I'm Falling in Love" by Patty Loveless, "God Bless the USA" by Lee Greenwood, and lots of classic rock. We would sing at the top of our lungs and always act out the cymbals during God Bless the USA. (You know you do that too!)
I remember one time waking up at 5am to go fishing with him, as soon as we hit the water I laid out on the back of the boat and fell asleep till 8. Some fishing partner I was!
My dad is one of the hardest working men I know. He served twenty years in the Air Force. He is so proud of that and of America and what America stands for. He constantly prays for this country. He presently works hard labor at an aluminum factory, it is hot hot hot in the summer and cold in the winter. His fingertips are cracked from using his hands, evidence that even though he has some seniority he still works hard.
Another of my favorite memories was when he and my mom would tuck me in at night, after awhile it just became my dad, (mom would stick her head in the door later and say goodnight). He would always pray for me or with me, sometimes laying his hand on my head. He stopped when I was about 16, I then had a job and would get home later. I always missed it. I know that he and my mom still pray for all of us before they go to bed. It's really nice knowing that.
Tomorrow is his birthday and I hope that this entry will be a testament to not only how much I love him but to the type of man he is. The best father, a hard working man, a patriot, and a man of God.
Happy Birthday Dad, you mean the world to me!