Miss my dad

Thursday was my dad's birthday. I should have baked an apple pie (what he always had for his birthday.) He's been gone now for almost 4 years. I've really been missing him this week.
I went to Laguna to pick up my son and see my daughter and her apartment there last weekend. The three of us had brunch and went into a yarn shop. I found myself looking for yarn in colors that reminded me of my dad and times I spent with him. What sticks in my mind the most are how blue his eyes looked in the sky blue shirts my mom bought for him. They looked grayer in cloudy weather. We lived in San Diego and had boats. My mom liked deep sea fishing and whale watching so we went out fairly often. Of course our last boat was named for her, the"Dorothy D'. I got to live on the boat the summer I turned 16. It was so cool to have freedom for the first time. I remember the sand and kelp, the ocean skies, seagulls, sea lions, the churning swells of the ocean.
Dad grew up in Washington near Seattle. We saw movies he and a friend made of the two of them zipping around in skiffs. They were black and white movies. We went to Washington a few times and camped on Puget Sound on a lot his father owned. More pictures in my head of the gray sea. He helped us build rafts out of the driftwood on the beach. He gave us a Flag with a flying horse on it for one of them. It was the best raft we ever built. We tied up the anchor too tight and the tide came up and washed it away. The very night we finished it.
My dad was quietly supportive of me. I was so lucky to have him in my life. He changed after my mom died to become more of a rebel. He grew his hair long and wore an earring, though he was still the staunch Republican down deep. We were able to know him better once mom was gone.
I miss my dad. I was very fortunate to have had the great childhood I did. I had great parents. I wish I had more time with them.