What's your dad's full name?

Alek (age 12): Kenton Russell **BLEEP** (edited for internet privacy- they all got this right)

Gracie (age 9): Kenton Russell **

Gabriel (age 8): Um, Kenton Russell **

Emilia (age 6): Um, Kenton Russell **. Right?

Josiah (age 4): *shrugs shoulders* <You don’t know what your dad’s name is?> *shakes head* < Is it Fred Flinstone?> *nods head*  < next question>

How old is he?

A: Thirty-seven. Well, last time I heard he was 37. Oh, yeah! The last birthday card you gave him had all sorts of 37’s written all over the envelope & I remember you put somewhere on there something about rubbing it in. I even helped you put Latin words... < okay, that’s enough, moving on>

Gr: Thirty-uh-seven.

Ga: Thirty-seven years old.

E: Sixty-two. Right? < me laughing> < Sixty-two!? are you sure?> No. I’m not. Sixty-one?

J: Seventeen. < yes, I’m robbing the cradle. the only thing right about that is he was 17 when we started dating>

What does your dad do for a living? What do ____ do?

A: He works as a nurse at the hospital and of course he works as our dad. I’m not good at explaining at what nurses do but all I can say is they are similar to doctors. Nurses help the patients and help the doctors. I don’t know. I’ve never actually been with dad when he was working.

Gr: Works. <doing what? is he a mechanic?> Nooooo! He’s a doctor. A nurse. Nurse. <what do nurses do?> He makes sure that they don’t die by watching them. <just by watching them, huh? if it were only that easy hehe>

Ga: He works to get money. <what does he do at work?> He’s a registered nurse. He watches people’s hearts beating on a computer and helps sick people by giving them medicine and gives them food and water every day. < that’s great that he feeds and waters them every day. Sorta sounds like one of your chores…>

E: Hm. A parent? I have no idea. < dad’s in trouble if that’s his job when he leaves you guys…BIG trouble… hehe>

J: I don’t know. < does he work on a ferry boat?> *shakes head* < what does he do?> He works on the minivan. < when he goes to work, that’s what he does? Works on our minivan?> *nods head* At nights he does. < okay….>

What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy?

A: Well, there are a lot of things I like doing with him. I like going on bike rides and fishing trips with him.

Gr: Play softball with him.

Ga: Work outside. < not a surprising answer from Gabe>

E: Go to Disneyland and DisneyWorld and the fair. < side note: we have never been to DisneyWorld. Ever.>

J: Eat chicken nuggets with him. < yeah, that ranks up there in my top 10 , too…>

What is something cool that your dad has taught you about?

A: He taught me how to fish and how to ride my bike.

Gr: How to play softball. He showed me where you should be standing in the outfield.

Ga: How to run fast. He said to just look straight where you’re going.

E: He taught me about animals and platypuses and all that stuff in school.

J: Spikey hair. < okay…earth to Josiah. Come in, Josiah..>

How do you know that your dad loves you?

A: If he didn’t love me, he probably wouldn’t do many fun things with me at all and he probably wouldn’t care very much what happened to us.

Gr: Because he shows it by taking care of us and spending time with us.

Ga: Because of how he teaches me and what he teaches me. Like what? How to catch things and how to work outside.

E: Because he always gives me food like donuts and clothing and he smiles at me and he let’s us go on walks. That’s why. < food + Millie= love. Smiles at us… that made ME smile>

J: Cuz he’s my dad. Cuz he likes me.

When you grow up, do you want to be like your dad? Why?

A: Yes, in quite a few ways. < what ways?>  Well, like I said earlier, nurses are kind of like doctors and I want to be a missionary doctor so I’d have to know a lot of the things he knows. And I also want to be like him in how good he actually is. I’ve never seen him do bad things like saying bad words. But instead of staying in one place like he does, I’d like to get out all over the world so I can be a missionary and preach. And I’d like to invent a few things too.

Gr: Maybe. < why “maybe”?>  Because I might be a nurse… but he works nights.

Ga: Yes. Because I want to work with him. < yep, Gabe wants to be a nurse just so he can work with his dad. His hero. Love it.>

E: No. Because I want to be… I mean, yes. So I can get some money and so I could get some food for us and if someone else is poor I can give them some food too. That’s why I want to work a lot. So I can get some money.

J: Yeah. Cuz he goes to work. Nothing else.

What makes your dad happy?

A: One thing that would make him happy is if I immediately do the things he asks me to. Another thing that makes him happy is when we buy gifts for him, with our own money especially.

Gr: When we give him gifts like games.

Ga: Julianna. < smile. So true>

E: When I do what he says and when I give him some surprises and then he kind of laughs and that’s how I make him be happy.

J: Me doing chores and stuff like I should do.

What’s your dad’s favorite thing to eat?

A: Well, I don’t know his favorite but I know he likes spaghetti, beef jerky, bacon, blueberries, chili and eggs. < best answer to this question goes to? ALEK!>

Gr: Cheese. < cheese?>

Ga: Probably hamburgers.
 

E: Probably that stuff  that we had yesterday- those sausages.

J: Cheese-booger. Actually, not a booger.  Uh cheese…. What? I don’t know. A double bacon cheeseburger. < I’m glad you clarified that>

What is something your dad always says to you?

A: These are the 3 words I hear him say the most: yes, no and goodbye. < laughing! yes, he’s a man of many words>

Gr: Goodnight.

Ga: Be careful!  < especially to you, you little daredevil!>

E: In the mornings when I eat dad says, get to work!  < oh my, I think I’m going to have to have a talk with him!>

J: Get to work! < me laughing, because I’m not sure Kenton has ever said this to him> That’s it! That’s all the words!