Dad Memory of the Day

Prepping for the holidays has been fun. B and I found ourselves in the store checking out the holiday candy sales and, right before my eyes, I find Christmas tree Peeps. Peeps! Dad LOVED Peeps. I remember calling him after Easter one year...

Me: Dad! Peeps are on sale, two-for-one. Do you want me to get you some?

Dad: Oh! That'd be great.

Me: How many would you like?

Dad: Is it the little packages or the big ones?

Me: The big ones.

Dad: I'll take 8. Put it on the mastercard.

Looking at those Peeps made me want to buy and eat a few in Dad's honor. One problem: I hate Peeps. They go against my natural anti-sweet tooth. They're sugar rolled in more sugar, literally one of the least appealing things ever.

When my Grandma died a few years ago, B and I celebrated her birthday by making her best recipes. Looking at those Peeps, I suggested to B that we keep up the tradition by making and enjoying a few of Dad's favorite eats.

I started my mental list and was shocked. Literally everything on the list makes my stomach turn:
Salads with no dressing
Unsweet tea
Pimiento cheese
Peeps
Peanut Brittle
Fruitcake
Ranch dip on vegetables
Tomato juice
Cottage cheese

...I could go on. The day of Dad's funeral, the family gathered in the back room to have one last visit with Dad and a little time together before facing the masses. We started talking about Dad's favorite things and decided that if we included anything with Dad, we'd end up looking like the craziest family ever.

You have to understand, Dad's favorite things were two-liters of Diet Mountain Dew, plastic Alabama game-day outfits, and an old red pullover that he loved and carried everywhere. We could've given him a gun (which he used to shoot snakes when they got too close to the house and to teach us kids how to respect them), but then we would've given him a gun. Seriously? His favorite hat was his wide-brimmed canvas hat. Unless it was game day, in which case it was his lucky Alabama hat. In the end, I think the only thing that made it in with him was the first gift I remember getting with him: a stuffed Dumbo that he gave me from the Polynesian hotel in Disney World.

I digress.

B & I are still at a loss as to how best to celebrate Dad when the time comes, but we sure did get a good laugh in the holiday baking section of the grocery store. I'm so thankful for B-- the man who can find me staring at a package of Christmas tree Peeps and understand. He actually offered to buy--and eat-- them, but I assured him the hug was enough.