It may seem funny to you, but this day is harder for me than Mother's Day is. I am a mother whether married or not. My boys have their mother whether married or not. But the "Father" thing haunts me. This day I am reminded of where I lack. I can do a lot for my boys. I can pick up a lot of the slack - not easy, but I can do it. However, no matter how much I try, I cannot impart masculinity to them. No woman can. No female can guide them into what it means to be a man. Only men can do that.
The statistics are frightening...If I relied solely on statistics. Boys without fathers suffer all sorts of social ills...if I relied on society to raise my boys. You know what I am finding? It is much harder to believe and trust God for your children than it is for yourself. If God doesn't come through the way I think He should for me, well, I can tell myself that perhaps I was seeking the wrong thing and know that even though I may not like it, God's plan is bigger and better. But I don't want my boys to suffer. I don't want them to hurt.
Now you can sit there reading this and tell me all the things that you and I both already know...suffering produces character. Hurt is necessary and inevitable. Pain has a purpose. Yes. Yes. Yes. I know this. Doesn't mean I wish it for myself or my kids. Doesn't mean I won't try to avoid it at all costs. Doesn't mean I would choose to seek it out and run headlong into it.
All I know is that my boys are having to learn a lesson at a tender age that I did not have to learn until I was an adult... man is horribly flawed and will disappoint you. Man is selfish. Man does not know how to truly love. (and don't take it wrong...I'm not just referring to the male gender for females are part of "man") Maybe they will be better off learning it early,
because for me, it was a devastating lesson that cut deep. I trusted. Too much. And I will bear the scars of that for quite a while - if not forever. Perhaps my children will develop the ability to get over it quicker
because they will have learned to not set their expectations so high.
All I can do is surround them with as many different examples of good, Godly men as I can. Encourage their masculine relationships. Seek out mentors for them. Give them room to be "men". Praise the good characteristics, instruct with the not so good ones. And ultimately, keep leading them back to their Heavenly Father. Being one parent is a heavy responsibility. Trying to be two is impossible. My heart breaks at my insufficiency.
Dear God, shelter and shield. Guide and direct. Mold and instruct. Please be their father. And help me to let you be.
So to all of you Father's out there... I honor you this day. May you bless and be blessed. I don't envy you your responsibility, for I have small tastes of it here and there. Know you are loved and appreciated and admired. We don't expect perfection...stumbling is not failure. Quitting is. Giving up is. So thank you for your hard work, for your sacrifice and most of all....for keeping your promises. Thank you for refusing to abandon those who are following you. Your word and leadership means more to us than how much you make or what position you hold at work or church or how competitive you are or how many answers you know. Knowing you will be there no matter what makes this place a little less scary.
Happy Father's Day!
Grandpa Funderburk had to help them get used to the waves...THIS water moves by itself and can knock you down!
They dug a hole and kept filling it with water...never could figure out where the water kept going... :)
Myrtle Beach, June 2009 with Grandma and Grandpa Funderburk
Visiting Great Grandma Funderburk
Uncle Philip is DA MAN!!! Noah called his new girlfriend a "princess" :)
Not sure about this new worship attire required at Gerald's church...
Looks like Granny went out shopping! :)
Hanging out with Uncle Steve
Who IS that?
Water gun fights are the best...and my boys can't seem to get enough. The bigger the gun, the better.
They are both wearing more swimming attire than the women of the 1900's! 
Noah, of course, then needed some work on his bike. Here grandpa is installing Noah's "turbo booster" (it was a stick that kept falling out and was serving as a very entertaining bit of frustration for Noah) He was soooo happy with papaw...
End result: Ethan is officially "extreme" and notice Noah's "turbo booster" sticking out above his back wheel. I promise you...this kid does not think he can ride his bike without the turbo booster. He's convinced the bike doesn't work if it's not there. :)
These pics are the reason I love KY so... My heart just leaps when I see forest-covered mountains. 
Noah told me he was fishin'. Basically...its a stick in the water. But he was happy to pretend!
Ethan had much more fun with feats of strength...let's see how big of a rock I can throw and how far I can throw it...
Dad, Poppie, Mom, Granny, Great Aunt Bernice, Aunt Vicky and Uncle Les
Course, I loved the critters. I swear, I think I channel the spirit of Ellie Mae Clampet...
Is that you, my prince?????? 
We chased this lizard around for about an hour before finally getting a pic.
Some very nice horseback riders came by and let the kids pet the horses. We invited them for desert... The one in the black T-shirt was packing a pistol which greatly entertained the boys!
Um, yeah. Did I mention my family is from KY? When in Rome... :)
A bunch of cousins having a lot of fun with a Daddy Long Legs. I was very pleased to see my boys getting into the fauna of the area and not being scared to touch! Yeah! My biology powers are having an effect finally! 
It was a lot of fun to watch the kids entertain themselves and make up games to play with just the nature around them. Oh, and the dog. 
A brief shower inspired Ethan to catch rain drops on his tongue. Of course, I never drink May raindrops. They aren't ripe yet... (to honor Lucy in a Charlie Brown Christmas...)
On our way back to the shelter from the cave. Our spelunking adventure was a success!
Still some of the props left from the Segal movie "Fire Down Below". Here my boys are showing off their guns by lifting boulders. And, no...I have NO idea why Ethan insists on wearing his socks like knee socks. Kids and their fashion now-a-days.
Inside "Fat Man's Squeeze". Doesn't every cave have one of these?
The Saltpetre cave isn't one of those pretty, sparkly caves, but it has some cool formations that are unique to it.
Most of the formations are worn smooth from the water that dug the cave out.
Another view of the Squeeze...
All through the squeeze, people have carved, painted, or otherwise inked their names and dates on the walls. I'm sure it's not the oldest, but the oldest I found so far was 1810. Supposedly, Daniel Boone carved his name in there somewhere...
Ethan just wanted to get out of the squeeze and was getting a bit annoyed with me wanting to take pictures. He did think it was cool that he actually had to duck here, though.
Another mommy treat...the only bat sighting we had.
Some of the left over tools and things from when people used this cave.
Noah was using his "stick of discovery" to, well, make discoveries. Every few steps he'd stop, point to something and say "oh, wow. That's cool" or tell me what he thought it was. This? According to Noah, someone painted a black spot there. Impressive, isn't he?
Not the squeeze, but the ceiling gets pretty low in some places. Even I had to duck...and that's saying something.
This is a fake skeleton put in a dug grave just to illustrate the area of the cave used for burial. The kids were fascinated. I tried to get them to lie down in there next to it but they wouldn't have any of that even knowing it was fake.
Another mommy treat: Cave Cricket. Even though I zoomed up on him, he's still probably about quarter to half dollar size for his body. Counting legs, I'd estimate him to be 5-6 inches from front to back, 3-4 inches side to side.
This is the "Great Room". They used to hold square dances, church, and a lot of other social gatherings back here. There is even a makeshift stage area and dressing room on one end - all made out of the rock (some natural and some carved).
Here's several cousins waiting by the entrance for the gate to be unlocked. Note Ethan...doing what he does best - bunny ears. :) He's so stinkin' funny!
Granny and Poppie
Granny with Great Aunt Bonnie.
Noah stuck some flowers in my hair and it just exploded from there. At least it helped hide the fact that it went limp somewhere around noon... :) Noah always makes me feel like a princess! He's a charmer, that one!
Poppie and one of his brothers, Uncle Dennis.
Orneriness is genetic in them Halcomb Brothers. :)
And of course no Mullins reunion would be complete without some home grown Bluegrass music. Uncle John is on the upright bass.