Best Moment you spent with your Dad!

staker

Mine was we were both pissed at home(pure country background,never opened up at all)after the pub one night when he says"c'mon,we'll go out and look at the stars"_to which we did>>>

I'll never forget it, first time I felt like a real man...

Just as a testosterone filled place here,do you remember the first time you left the shields down with your Dad?

Bipolar Joe

Talking about heartbreak. I asked him how long it took to get over my Mother, he said something along the lines of "23 years later I still wake up thinking about her and feel like I'm going to have a panic attack. Do I still love her? A part of me does. Do I miss her? Quite a lot. Do I forgive her? No, and I wouldn't take her back either." Seeing a man who has a brash sense of humour about everything say that made me feel OK that I'm a wuss.

Abi

I'm going to love this thread!


I absolutely adore my Dad. He'd confide in me about some stuff, and he hears my shit out too. To other people he doesn't come across as easy to approach, but I have him pegged, its a protective thing for his family

I've so many happy memories, and hopefully there will be loads more! I'm definitely a Daddy's girl We crack each other up, because we've the same sense of humour, and the same cackle when we laugh.

My earliest happy memories were as a toddler watching him in the garage and running about (probably making a nuisance of myself!) in my barefeet. He always facinated me. Another memory would be of when he first took me to Mondello, again as a toddler. My mother was worried about the noise, in case I'd be scared - I didn't bat an eyelid

As a result of his influence, I've a slightly tom-boyish sway about me, but I wouldn't want to be any different

Jesus, to be a kid again

Kya1976

Like Abi I'm a proper daddys girl.

After I graduated from college I went home for a break. My dad came to pick me up at the airport, and he had printed out this massive congratulation sign and put embarrassing/funny pictures of me as a kid on it(a tradition back home).
When he saw me he started singing and waving this sign around like a crazy person(again another tradition to try to embarrass your child as much as possible):p. I don't think I have ever seen my dad looking so proud:)
That's a moment I will definitely never forget!


A few years later I got a tattoo of my dad on my back, he was mighty chuffed with himself when I showed him the tattoo:D

Joey the lips

I fell out with my father as a young adult and he died before i could get over the reasons.

Having said that 2 things spring to mind.

1. I never forget he brought me everywhere with him on the cross bar off his bike. Had a saddle fitted as well. I loved driving through the puddles and watching the water go through the tyre threads. He always tried to follow the smooth features of the path to make the bike more comfortable. This i remember well. He use to cycle about 16-20 miles a day with me. Granted not every day.

2. My father thought me all my good values and despite my bad temper at times he really thought me them well. This is something i will always love him for because my wife now tells me that this makes me a great father which i was unaware of because it came natural.

trad

Driving a train, he was a train driver.

Handsome Bob

We were having a pint and he just said to me "Whatever you do it's okay, I know I can trust you to do the right thing." It knocked me sideways because we all see my old man as someone with real old school values, someone who would give you a hard time if you didn't do things the way he wanted. It was a rare insight into the man rather than the dad.

here.from.day.1

I can't really remember many moments with my father, one I do though is when he used to put myself or my brothers on his lap and steer the car..

RedXIV

Got a few I reckon, have a hard time picking one. I went through the phases of thinking my Dad was a superhero up till about 9, thinking he was a dictator till about 17 and now he'd be an idol. Would love to end up like my dad.

But I reckon one of the best memories I had was when I was about 5 or so, I came home from school and he had build me a cart. It was nothing fancy, a fruit box on an old set of pram wheels but he pulled me up hills and let me fly down them for hours that day. Probably one of the highlights of my life, remember thinking then that it was way better than Xmas

MitchKoobski

Never really did much with my dad, was always working nights and different shifts in Waterford Glass. Now that they're gone, we spent most of our time together watching a match or in the pub.

Best moment was coming home ever so slightly pished, eating dinner and then watching Kelly's Heroes for the 11th time.

kfallon

Playing football out the back garden when I was 7 or 8!

Walking down the prom in Tramore with me on his shoulders.

Him teaching me how to cycle my bike, making sure he was close enough to me in case I started to wobble.....that was just under 3 weeks ago :pac: :P

Most recently it was probably at my brother's wedding, me, me Ma and me Da sitting next to each other during the meal just having a bit of craic.

I've been lucky to have them both

cyrusdvirus

No idea where to even start. like Red XIV I had phases of Superhero, Dictator, Just all round cool dude, now he's someone to emulate.

if my peers regard me as half the man my father is, I'll be doing well.

seanrose

my memories of my father are few and far between and i hate to say that,he passed away 6 years ago, but my memory would be going to local football on a saturday,he used to be heavily involved in a local team and when we would come home he would have the league table and get the results from our local radio station and she where we were in the table

Wibbs

Going fishing with him. We'd spend hours across hill and dale up and down rivers. Since he died 11 years ago I could count the amount of times I've gone fishing on one hand. My heart just wasn't in it anymore. A good friend who I used to fish with died around the same time, so it's like some other wibbsy who used to cast a fly on a warm summers evening. Listening to his experiences during world war 2 and after when he lived all over the world was another one. We were never close in the huggy sense. I suppose he was a different stiff upper lip generation(when he was born the great war had just ended and Ireland was still under the crown) which had a fair bit to do with that.

ElleEm

Spending time with my dad in the car alone are some of my favourite memories. I come from a big family, so being alone with my dad was rare. We both love nature and the sea, so sometimes we would go drive somewhere to look at the sea and chat. We'd go to Howth during windy storms to watch the waves crash over the pier and stuff.
When I lived in the country, he'd collect me from the station and we'd have a great chat and a drive before returning to the house.

He's the best fun, and such a man's man. Underneath it all, he's a big softie. I'm such a daddy's girl. I firmly believe that the reason I have such respect for myself in relationships is cos of the way my dad treats my mam, and he taught me that I deserve to be treated with respect at all times.

I heart him!

18AD

Unfortunately he passed through to the other side years ago.

But watching him try to catch an octopus with his bare hands while snorkling or pissing him off by beating him at Mortal Kombat are up there.

Galvasean

I suppose after years of pipe dreaming, finally getting to see Bergkamp, Henry and co. play at Highbury. We got there in the nick of time too! Less than two years later the stadium was demolished, Bergkamp retired from football and Henry left to join Barcelona!

newbee22

My dad died when I was 8, but I still have lots of memories.One in particular, he was going fishing and I made him bring me with him, I was a real Daddys girl. Anyway we went fishing, well he went fishing I watched and he caught some fish, we packed up the car to go home and one of the fish was jumping around in the boot, well not jumping but ye get the idea, I remember refusing to get into the car for ages until I was certain the fish wouldn't attack me!:)

Otis Driftwood

Ive never been close to my Dad but one really fond recollection was from November last year shortly before my brother moved to Canada.

Myself,my two brothers and my Dad decided to go for a few drinks in the local on the Saturday before my brother headed off.Now Dad wouldnt be a drinker at all,he is the type of person that could make 2 drinks last 4 or 5 hours.

Anyway,in the boozer myself and the bro were horsing pints into us and making Dad match us drink for drink.In the space of 4 hours he drank about 8 brandies and for want of a better word,he was hammered.Myself and the brothers were mad for more sauce so rang Mam to come in and pick us up to drop us to town and bring Dad home.The journey in was one of the funniest things ever.Dad talking shyte and telling us all how proud of us he was while trying to find some music on one of the radio stations.It was basically like the below.My poor mother.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVM1TXMd714

Always brings a smile to my face when I think about it.

Dr Galen

Like Otis, I've never really been close to my dad. Technically he's my step-dad and I've never known or met my biological father. Regardless though, I think of him as my dad and thats what counts.

We did share some great times though even without being close close. The best was the day I got married. He was pretty much a rock that day, without having to do very much. He did try to pull to one side late on in the night and give me some advice. I found that pretty hard to take tbh, mainly because he had been sitting on the floor doing the "rock the boat" about 15 mins before with a brandy in one hand and a bottle of Miller in the other. He normally doesn't drink....

R.P.McMurphy

I remember my dad used to come into me and my brothers room when I was young (between 5-8 I'd say) and tell us these mad stories before going to bed. He had a few favorites, that he had just completely made up. One in particular involved a 3 legged horse winning a race and it was a great un. Always made us laugh before nodding off.

Years later he still used to just come into my room late enough for a chat. I always felt a bit guilty that it became a bit annoying (I was a teenager at this point) but didn't particularly mind and humored him cause I knew he just wanted to keep up that contact (I presume).

Oh and I will always remember him letting me sip a guinness for the first time. I was 8!

staker

Posted this thread last night after a few pints so the dutch courage was up..

That night we looked at the stars my old man told me about his life as a lonely orphaned little boy and how he used take great solace looking at the stars from his bedroom window.I'm one of a family of 9 siblings,if I make it half the way he did I'll be happy!
Kind of a bit "Hollywood"ish but we literally sat and talked for a long time with a bottle of Teachers.

krudler

My dad got me into movies when I was a kid, used to bring me home stuff like The Goonies and Star Wars and other stuff from the video rental place (back then vhs tapes cost a small fortune to buy) and taped things off the tv he thought I'd like.
My first cinema visit was with him, it was Batman in 1989, I still remember how excited I was going to see it, I was 8 and all I remember was the popcorn smell and how big the cinema screen seemed, it was an old cinema but had real character, not like the soulless multiplexes we have these days.
He also used to sneakily let me watch movies that I was too young for so my mam wouldnt find out, like Aliens or The Terminator, but he'd fast forward anything he thought would be too violent, but let me see enough to get the gist of how cool these movies I wouldnt see the unedited versions of for years later were :pac:

So I can definitely attribute my lifelong movie geek interests to a childhood spent watching Star Wars, robbing my mams black laundry basket and putting it on my head pretending to be Darth Vader, or tucking a red towel into the back of my tshirt and flying around the garden like Superman. my sandbox? well that was the desert areas from Star Wars (I'm pretty sure theres some action figures embedded in the foundations of the extension to the house we built from using the sand in that too)

My parents live abroad now but any time I call them we yak about films I've seen in the cinema or stuff he's bought online to watch, and when I go over to visit I bring him stuff that hasnt been released over there yet, always look forward to just getting there, throwing on a dvd and relaxing with the old man

Eric Cartman

I honestly cant pick 1 , there have been so many , hes pretty awesome

ontheditch2

The latest thing that comes to mind, am involved in coaching a team, and a few weeks ago, we won a very important match, got a text message after it from Dad and all it said was "A very proud father today".
I would lie if i said it didn't bring a tear to my eye.

Live at seperate ends of the country at the moment, but went home the following weekend, and the first thing he did was bring me to his local and we had a great night.

We are a sporting family, so they are the main memories..

krudler

Eric Cartman wrote: »

I honestly cant pick 1 , there have been so many , hes pretty awesome

I thought you never found out who he was? although I stopped watching years ago :pac:

Happyzebra

Two of us drinkin whiskey in the kitchin (first and only time we drank together). My mum was so annoyed and just continued with the ironing (at one o'clock in the morning!) and refused to join us by way of taking the high moral ground.

He went to his grave never knowing how much that night meant to me... Made up for years of being overlooked by him

PseudoFamous

I never really knew my dad too well. He was never really around, working stupidly long hours for very little, on one occasion setting up an entire office network for a favour, receiving no remuneration for it; my mum was furious over that. After farmor (father's mother, ie., grandmother) died, he went home to Denmark to take care of grandad (who bizarrely would only speak to me in English, despite me being able to speak Danish fine..), who had cancer at the time, dying not long after. This as well as stress from work got to him, and when he came back here, he started having hallucinations (I only found out recently from my mum what they were, chilling stuff), losing sleep, etc. On the way to work one morning, he crashed the car, giving him permanent spinal damage. He needed to do a fair bit of travelling around to get special surgeries, spinal fusion and stuff. I can remember he said to me "Don't waste your entire life working, have fun, you're not going to be here long", and a few weeks later, he died of kidney failure from a bad mixture of painkillers and antidepressants.

The only decent memory I can think of with him was helping him to build a computer for the family, not long before he went back to Denmark.

Halo Kitty

Wow where do i begin..i have so many great times with my dad...from Travelling Europe by motorcyle in 1976 and camping together...to asking him to celebrate my 40th birthday with me in Prague in a very cold December...where he sang happy birthday to me on Charles Bridge.. tone deaf......to travelling together to Budapest, Poland, the past few yrs...Now in his seventies he wants to go to France again on his motorbike...this time i think mam will intervene...To be honest my dad is my best friend...and i hope he also sees me as a friend and not just a daughter....lol he has just sent me a silly text...

pragmatic1

Probably having the patience to teach me how to drive. But wouldnt be very close with my father because he comes from a completely different era.

Gloomtastic!

here.from.day.1 wrote: »

I can't really remember many moments with my father, one I do though is when he used to put myself or my brothers on his lap and steer the car..

+1 Also eating jam sandwiches and supping milk from a bottle when he'd take me to Dublin in the lorry in the school holidays.

Seems sad that the best memories from 45 years together were so long ago.

My Dad and I were so different, we never talked much. But we each had a huge respect for each other - well i know i did anyways. He worked so hard all his life and was the kindest man ever - never had a bad word to say about anyone. I think he respected the fact that I always did my own thing, never worrying about convention or what other people thought (a horrible Irish disease).

Always remember the Sean Hughes story about callng home and your Dad answering the phone. After a brief few exchanges - mainly about the weather(!) - you'd say, 'Is Mum there?'

I talked more to my Dad in the last few years of his life than in the previous 40 mainly because he had dementia and was on a different planet most of the time. It was telling him to get back into bed or that he was at home but to me it was still talking.

mark_jmc

never really got on with my dad as a young fella but in the 12 years since i left home we get on very well. Over the last few years my dad, my brother my dads friend and a mate of mine have gone to see real madrid play twice and also gone to see barca play. I never would have thought that I would end up going away on weekends like this with my dad.
I'm glad that I was able to grow up enough to have this good relationship with him

cyrusdvirus

I'm loving this thread.

The amount of us who have had the simple pleasure of sitting down for a pint with our fathers is really nice to see.

I remember about 15 years ago, when I moved out of the parents house, myself and my dad started going to the Pub on a Sunday evening to watch whatever match was on at 4.00.

My mates would all be there, but more often than not, me and dad would just sit together, having a bit of a chat, supping a few pints, watching the game.

I'd meet up with my friends the following Saturday evening when i would get home again, and during the usual slagging matches that a night out with friends descends to they'd always use the Going out for Drinks with your Daddy comment to try to finish it off....

Now? Now when we go over for the Sunday match I can guarantee there'll be 4 or 5 of the lads there with their fathers!!

The Corinthian

Having a drink together in Raffles hotel in Singapore, discussing women, life, family and more women.

Delirium

My dad nurtured my interest in books/comics and movies.

Two things that I remember that made me really happy were the following. The first was when he bought me this massive tome of a book when I was about 7. It was called something like "how things work". It was essentially a science book for kids about a variety of things. He'd bought it because I was always curious about stuff and just thought it would be a nice gift

The other was when I was in baby or high infants. The school at the time didn't have a school uniform at the time so we could wear casual clothes. He let me wear my full batman costume (the adam west version) , cape and hood, to school Was one of the best days I ever had in school even if I did dogs abuse from the older kids :P

As I've grown up, we still would be very close and would have pints every so often.

One thing I decide to do as a mini tradition a few years ago, was to tell him that the two of us would wait until I got holidays from work for Christmas and we would both go see the lord of rings movie that was out that year. It was great to have this thing to look forward to do with him every year

Kinetic^

kfallon wrote: »

Playing football out the back garden when I was 7 or 8!

Same. One time we were on holidays in wexford and I begged the parents to bring me to the beach, as any 6/7 would. We got there, I hopped out of the car and ran for the sand straight away. Father went to kick the football ahead but instead it nailed me in the back of the head and I went face first in to the sand. I'll get him back in his old age! Just delighted youtube or the internetz were not prominent back at the end of the 80s.

Have any of the male posters noticed themselves turning in to their father?

kfallon

Kinetic^ wrote: »

Same. One time we were on holidays in wexford and I begged the parents to bring me to the beach, as any 6/7 would. We got there, I hopped out of the car and ran for the sand straight away. Father went to kick the football ahead but instead it nailed me in the back of the head and I went face first in to the sand. I'll get him back in his old age!

Sorry but :D:D
Thanks for making me chuckle on this Friday morning!

TouchingVirus

I've got such fond memories of me & my dad, thankfully he's still around so there'll be more to come I'm sure. A few stick out such as the time as a boy of 8 both my dad and his dad took me & my cousin camping. Me and the cousin are the same age so we headed off to bed early. We woke up at around 12am and poked our head outside the tent to see an epicly pissed dad & grandad talking about lots of things. Dad noticed us watching but didn't shoo us back to bed or give out, he just left us alone to marvel and appreciate the situation. It was a supreme lesson in bonding.

There was the time when he took me and the two sisters aside and told us they must have raised us right after we threw them a surprise 25th wedding anniversary bash.

The day after his dad died we went fishing from close on dawn until pretty much darkness. Out in the boat, and barely said two words to each other the whole day such was the situation. But I was just happy he was comfortable enough to spend some time with me in one of his darkest days.

But the best memory I had is the look on his face is when Mam, me & the two sisters surprised him with a trip to Upton Park to see West Ham vs Tottenham for his 50th. He had never been despite bringing me to Old Trafford to see Manchester United play. We had bought the flights, accommodation, booked the time off work for him on the quiet and everything. You couldn't take the smile off his face all weekend and with a firm nod of the head I knew he appreciated it

practice

Fishing and summer picnics around the rocks in Clogherhead.

JillyQ

Some of the best memories i have with my Dad are when we used to go flying toghter. We'd take off in the morning and go to what ever flyin was on that day.

baby and crumble

My Dad and I are too similar to spend too much time together these days, as weird as that sounds. But I do remember when I was about 7 or 8 he brought me camping, and I had the BEST fun, just camping in a tent for the first time (he always used to bring my brothers camping and fishing, so it was a really treat for me to get him for a whole weekend!). He taught me how to use a professional camera that weekend too. I remember he was really chuffed when we developed the film when we got home that I'd managed to get some good shots.

If we asked him a question he'd always try and find a way to answer it. I remember asking him once why did the sky look the way it did at night, and he spent about 45 minutes explaining the solar system to me, using footballs, tennis balls, and my head as the sun!

Logical Fallacy

Hmmm....I gave my parents a lot of **** growing up. There was a some violence, some crime, some trouble with the cops etc etc. Of course i was never really willing to tell my parents the root cause of all my issues and there would be many an argument about stuff. I wasn't disrespectful to them at all, i just had issues with pretty much everyone else.

Around Leaving Cert year i started to get my **** together and turn stuff around. Interestingly i had always done pretty well in school...but i think my parents kind of forgot about that as the leaving cert approached. I'm quite thankful to my parents for never giving up on me and always trying to get me on the right path....one of the methods my Dad used was to make a deal with me. He was worried that i didn't appear to be studying too much so decided to offer the incentive of 100 bucks for every A i got in an honours subject.

Results day rolls round and i hand my parents a slip of paper that says i got 4 A's...so Dad owes me 400 squid. The look on his face was brilliant...i'll never forget it. This odd mix of shock that i had done so well and pride in the same, but also in the fact that i had basically gotten one over on him.

That day we probably had the best chat we had ever had in my whole life...my Dad realised there was a lot more to me than the previous couple of years troubles implied and I learned that my Dad was genuinely a man of honour who only wanted what was best for.

That will always be the best day i spent with my Dad for me as it closed the book on the old me and starting writing a new chapter in my life...and my Dad was integral in making that happen and helping me get there.

D'Agger

[CHEESE]

Hard to pick out one in particular....probably an amalgamation of countless car rides to the football pitch where we'd talk about how much I should be trying to score, encouraging me all the time, gently nudging me to do better with every game which was something I always strived to do anyway.

My Dad's still alive and I'm lucky because he's one of my best friends, we're very similar with regard to humour and our ways of doing things/dealing with things - I really do fear the day I won't be able to talk to him because he always gives me the best advice and helps we focus & prioritize.

The greatest compliment I've ever been given was when I worked for a company in a branch my dad worked in before moving to a different branch - the person in question said - "You're exactly like your father" and honestly it's as proud as I've ever felt because to me it was the same as being told "You're a great person

[/CHEESE]

LegacyUser

I'm definitely a daddys girl and I always appreciate any time I get to spend with my dad. It sounds so cliche and over the top, but he really is the person I most respect and love in this world. If my brothers grow up to be half the man he is, they'll be doing well.

Some of the stuff I remember as a kid were basic dad things like carrying me up to bed on his shoulders, or going fishing with him and my brothers.

Some of the best moments I've had with my dad are having a few pints with him in the pub - he's been my drinking buddy since I was 16 or 17 and we'd always have great chats over a beer or two. I've also been to quite a few gigs with my dad - he has the best taste in music so we'd see all the oldies like Bob Dylan, Jackson Browne, Madness etc. together.

This certainly wasn't a 'good' moment by any means but it was the first moment that made me realise just how much my dad (and mam and brother who came aswell) cared about me. Previously, I had never really seen my dad show emotion - he never got angry or upset. And to this day he is a really laid back, calm kinda guy. But when they picked me up from the police station at like 3am when I was 15 after having been attacked and raped, just to see the look on his face...I had never seen such emotion from before.

Gandalph

I remember my dad teaching how to play football

I remember my dad teaching me how to play golf

I remember my dad giving me 200e to spend at my grad

I remember my dad bringing me to the horse races to watch him ride (he was a jockey)

I remember my dad bringing me on every ride I wanted to go on in Disney world

I could go on forever but I feel obliged to do this sort of stuff with my kids when I have them

kfallon

Gandalph wrote: »

I remember my dad bringing me to the horse races to watch him ride (he was a jockey)

Oooooo......c'mon give us a name

Esroh

This Thread is Great:D

I'm lucky to still have my Dad around and have had some great times with him. I smiled at the sitting on the knee and steering posted earlier as this was special to me. My Dad was a Country Vet and because I loved them he would always try to make sure I went on every (non emergency)call involving Horses. One of the main places was an old country house with a 1.5mile drive way. It strated with steering and by 12 I was driving up and down there.

But last week at 47 I brought him(the gardener) in some Spuds/Onions and peas I had grown myself(i have just found my green fingers). Later that evening I got a text saying they were a bit special. It made my year:)

Psygnosis

Well mine is my dad teaching me to read and write when I was aroun 6 or 7. I was cast aside in school as being dim.

But my dad new a school teacher who lived locally a friend of the family who assesed me and it transpires I have dyslexia. Well the teacher thought me the basics of phonetical english. This went on around 3 months or so.

From then on my Dad who would get home at around 6:30 in the eveing would spend 2 to 3 hours reading writing with me. Giving me excercises to do. The same with maths this went on for around 2 years untill he had me up to me speed in English and Maths. He would bring me to books unlimited in donaghmede and ask me to pick a book. He would then spend nights reading with me. I hated it at the time as it was so frustrating when I did'nt could'nt unserstand how to pronounce a work and I must of really tried his patience.

He's an absolute legend because I have no idea what would of happened to me if he had'nt of done this.

He's still around retired at 55 with mum and now is living the life fair play to him. Have nothing but absolute respect for him

irishh_bob

never got on with my dad , he had zero interest in my hopes and dreams and if anything , held me back , never encouraged me and was hyper critical , hes desceased now quite a few years but id be lieing if i said my dad had a possitive influence on my life

FurryFace

Walking the Dublin mountains with my Dad was great

LeeHoffmann

One moment? Jees that's tough. One for me was when we went for a drive to Carlingford. My Dad was incredibly hard-working (to a fault perhaps). He spent his day off each week cleaning the house and/or lying on the couch. I was always telling him to do something fun with his days off so one day we got in the car to go for a drive (his idea). We had no destination in mind; we just started driving and he'd ask 'left, right or straight?' at the junctions and we ended up in Carlingford. It was a lovely sunny day so we went for a wander through the streets and markets and then went for a coffee in a cafe. He was a real wandering-through-markets type and going to cafe's was almost a hobby. Heaney has a poem about something similar with his mother and I always think of the line ''[wandering] free in the oriental streets of thought'' when I think on this memory. Another great one was when we had an orange fight. We were both adults but somehow ended up wrestling each other on the kitchen floor, throwing mandarins at each other. The image is so clear in my head: his face was purple with laughter (I'd never seen him laugh so hard) and orange juice was running down his face. He was rubbing a burst orange into my head. My younger brother was leaning against the wall just shaking his head at us. There are so many 'best moments'. I can't choose one. I was lucky.