Happy Birthday Embry!

Yesterday was my dad's birthday. I wanted to do a long post in tribute to him, but I ran out of time. Because my dad is turning 49, I am going to give 49 reasons why my dad is so great.
1.) No one calls my dad by his first name. They (even my mom and baby cousins) call him by his last name, Embry.
2.) My dad can talk to anyone about anything
3.) Growing up, my dad came home every day by 5pm and played with me and my brothers.
4.) We were the envy of all of the neighborhood kids cause our dad would pitch our pick up baseball games. He also could throw the ball so high into the air that it seemed to disappear.
5.) He always organized family game nights (Sorry was a family favorite).
6.) Between 1st and 4th grade, I would fall down the stairs all the time. Whether I knocked myself out or just my breath, dad would come over pick me up, put me on the couch, and make sure I was okay.
7.) When I had my First Communion rehearsal, dad took me to get my first "big girl" bike and to see the movie "American Tale" with Fivel.
8.) Ever since I was little, my dad would grab my hand when we were walking in a parking lot, down the street, or on the beach and skip with me.
9.) He has 100 nicknames for everything and everyone.
10.) Is a great example of what a Christian man, husband, and dad should be to my brothers and me.
11.) He takes amazing care of everyone he knows and meets.
12.) I think he believes the best in everyone.
13.) He's really smart
14.) He and my mom have fun together. They are very silly
15.) When I was little, he never went away on work trips. I never realized how great it is to never wonder where your dad is.
16.) My mom once told me she thought my dad's best quality is to forgive and forget...like Jesus. I think so too.
17.) Some people might have thought that my dad was overprotective, but I'm glad he was protective.
18.) A few years ago my dad started a new business that has a Christ based mission. Here is the website
19.) He provides a local pastor to his employees throughout the south. Not only is this good for the employees, but also good for the business.
20.) He's been asked to speak about this program by several different groups. The most impressive to me is Yale Divinity. This is an article about my dad's talk
21.) Dad is loyal to a fault
22.) Dad's best friend (besides my mom) has been his friend since he was a kid. They still act like they are 12.
23.) My dad was a perfect example of what a father-son relationship should be when his dad was sick with cancer.
24.) He gushed over how beautiful my mom was at my wedding.
25.) When I was about ready to go to my first homecoming dance, my dad said I couldn't go because I looked too pretty.
26.) He would make our breakfasts before school every other day...his breakfasts were always the best because they were the least nutritional.
27.) When he would make Eggos, he would say, "You want strips or pieces?" and he would cut the Eggos as we specified. He still remembers how we like them.
28.) Our pediatritian, a small Peruvian woman named Dr. Steves, was my dad's pediatrition. She loves him. If he was sick with us, she would take a look at him as well.
29.) When he is sick, he says his "nose air is hot."
30.) The adult onesie
31.) When we got sick, we would sometimes get to go to Steves with dad and then go to his office which was next door.
32.) He would always call home when we were sick and ask what drink we wanted him to bring us from the store.
33.) When we went on vacation, dad always forgot to bring sunglasses (he doesn't really wear them much) and would get a pair of ugly, plastic sunglasses from a gas station.
34.) He is the grill master, but also a closet gourmet cook. We always liked watching the TV show, "Great Chefs" before Food network
35.) The one solid rule growing up was "Do not drink the last Coke, that's Dad's."
36.) My brothers both think he is the greatest and always have.
37.) I have made a red velvet cake for my dad's birthday twice, both times they were leaning and crazy looking.
38.) My dad gave me his pretty eyelashes
39.) and straight hair!
40.) Dad had a crazy, Animal house type college experience.
41.) When I was born, he stopped drinking. He said he never liked it. But it made such an impact on me, because it showed me that having fun doesn't have to be connected to drinking.
42.) When the power went out one Saturday when we were younger, dad fashioned his own board game with a posterboard, magic marker, and crazy stunts. I specifically remember watching him do somersaults to get past a challenge.
43.) When mom would go out of town, dad would come home with a pack of Cokes and a package of Little Debbie Swiss Cake Rolls.
44.) For his 40th birthday, my mom had a party at a fancy restaurant with a Swiss Cake Roll stack for a birthday cake.
45.) When dad and I went to DC before the wedding to look for apartments for me and KW, I got sick at breakfast and dad took me back upstairs to lie down, got me a diet coke, and watched Harry Potter with me on HBO till I fell asleep. He even asked me to explain the movie to him so I could focus on something nice.
46.) My dad treats KW wonderfully. He makes fun of him like one of the kids, worries about what's going on with him, and talks to him about religion and politics (because KW can't talk Georgia football like my brothers).
47.) KW likes my dad, respects his opinions, and wants to be like him.
48.) Dad always knew how to comfort me: To make me laugh until I stopped crying for sadness and started crying from his silliness.
49.) My dad is not like anyone else, Thank GOD!

Happy Birthday Doggy Daddy.