#1The Daddy in my eyes —
Rachel Cochenour2023-02-21 16:02
I am the youngest daughter, the baby girl Rachel. (When I was born my parents named me Sabrina Joy. After alot of grief of being called names by peers, my parents gave me the option to change my name, and so I changed my name to Rachel). My Daddy always called me "littleone." I want to share about my Daddy here from my eyes. I was born July 11th 1984, right in between the two car accidents of my Daddy (one in 1982 and the other in 1986) My Daddy's second car accident changed all our lives forever. I was young so I didn't understand the things that were going on, but 5 years after the second car accident we found out that my Daddy had a silent brain injury. He would go to the store and forget what he was suppose to pick up. Things he knew how to fix easily, he could not remember how to fix. After getting frustrated he put up his car keys and didn't want to go out until he got some answers. After the discovery of his silent brain injury and traumatic brain injury my Daddy got a referral to go to Chedoke McMaster Rehab for brain injuries. He was gone for a few months, but to a child who didn't quite understand, it seemed like forever. During this time of Daddy away for treatment, I remember things were different at home. I don't remember what stirred the thought, or what caused my sister and I to go downstairs and tell our mom we wanted to run away from home. Mama was sitting at her office desk in the basement and she turned to us and said ok, pack your bags and I will have Children's services pick you up after school tomorrow. We went upstairs and starting packing our stuff, when I turned to my sister and said, "if we leave that means we will never see Daddy again." we stopped packing and went back downstairs and told mama we changed our minds, that we wanted to stay. And she said ok, she hadn't called them yet then we went back upstairs to our room and unpacked what we had started packing. When Daddy came back home from Rehab he would ask if anyone wanted to go to the store with him and of course who wouldn't want to go out on a car ride with Daddy?! I remember going out with him to the store and he would say, "Now, what did we come to the store to get?" We always thought he was playing around and we would tell him the things mama needed. When we would leave the store, I remember him saying, "what car did we drive here?" Again, as a young kid, we always thought Daddy was just having fun, but in reality, he was serious and I didn't understand the real struggle he was dealing with. When we got a car with the remote lock and alarm, it was fun cause Daddy could press the button and we could find the car really fast! Daddy liked to take us out for car rides. He called it "Going to get Lost" We loved going to get lost! Daddy would take us on windy roads up and down hills, take us to see the neighborhood where he grew up, and tell us stories. Then he would say, "uh oh, I think we are lost!" We would laugh, I think a couple of times we were actually lost and he didn't know how we got where we were, but he always found his way back home. I remember when we were young, Saturdays was chore day. We would bring our laundry to the basement and Daddy would get the laundry started. After we all brought our laundry downstairs, Daddy would give us each a couple of quarters and tell us to go to Little Short Stop (Convenient Store just down the road from our house) and go buy something. He knew by doing this that we would be gone for a few hours that would keep us out of the house so he could get the chores done. We use to go into the store and drive the workers there crazy. We would look at all the candy, 1 cent candies, 5 cent candies, 10 cent candies and then you could get fun dips for 25 cents. We would take a couple of pieces of candy go up to the register and ask the lady "if I bought this I would get change?" she would reply, "yes, you can get xx amount of those with that quarter." As kids we always thought change meant we had more to spend. Anyway, we would be in the store for hours buying candy, We always surprised our Dad when we got back home with how much candy we had in our bags from the quarters he gave us. I remember my Daddy would sit outside on the backyard deck and read while he suntanned. While he was reading you would notice that he would have one hand holding the book and the other hand up over his head trying to sun tan under his arms on the occasion you would see him wearing his sunglasses out there while he was reading too! After dinner and dishes were done, you would find my Daddy sitting on the couch watching his favorite tv show "Cheers," "Night Court," while doing word searches. I remember cuddling up beside him and helping him find words. One day he came home and gave me my very own wordsearch book because I liked doing them so much! I remember one night as we were getting ready for bed and I had a loose tooth, my Daddy was tickling me and having fun. He called me to stand up and go see him as I stood up on the bed and went over to him he said, let me see your tooth, so I opened up my mouth and he wiggled my tooth right out! Talking about tickling, my daddy loved to tickle my sister Maddie (we are about 18 months apart and shared a room). Whenever Daddy would tickle her, she would squirm one way and say "don't" and squirm the other way and say "stop" and so my dad would put it together and say "oh, you don't want me to stop?! ok," so he would tickle her some more, and we would all laugh. I remember a time my Daddy's adopted sister Aunt Barb and her husband and daughter came to live with us for a little while. My Daddy loved to have fun, and joke around. One day as he was doing laundry, aunt Barb was sitting one the couch crocheting when my dad came upstairs from the basement and said "Barbara, I'm really sorry. I was doing the laundry and somehow your shirt got mixed in with the warm/hot wash and it shrunk your shirt. He would pull out one of our dolls clothes and show her, and she would laugh, and my dad would laugh. After being gone all day working, once a week my Daddy use to come home with a dozen red roses for Mama. Sometimes, Daddy would give each of us kids a red rose to give to mama too! As, I think of more about my Daddy I will post another Tribute to his page. My Daddy was the best Daddy for me! I could not have asked for a better Daddy. Although my older siblings knew my daddy before his car accidents and saw the difference in him after his car accidents, I only knew him (or remember him) after his car accidents. Although he struggled internally he never really showed outwardly how hard of a struggle he was having. He was the best Daddy. I miss you Daddy and I love you always and forever Love littleone, your baby girl
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My Daddy always called me "littleone."
I want to share about my Daddy here from my eyes.
I was born July 11th 1984, right in between the two car accidents of my Daddy (one in 1982 and the other in 1986) My Daddy's second car accident changed all our lives forever. I was young so I didn't understand the things that were going on, but 5 years after the second car accident we found out that my Daddy had a silent brain injury. He would go to the store and forget what he was suppose to pick up. Things he knew how to fix easily, he could not remember how to fix. After getting frustrated he put up his car keys and didn't want to go out until he got some answers.
After the discovery of his silent brain injury and traumatic brain injury my Daddy got a referral to go to Chedoke McMaster Rehab for brain injuries. He was gone for a few months, but to a child who didn't quite understand, it seemed like forever. During this time of Daddy away for treatment, I remember things were different at home. I don't remember what stirred the thought, or what caused my sister and I to go downstairs and tell our mom we wanted to run away from home. Mama was sitting at her office desk in the basement and she turned to us and said ok, pack your bags and I will have Children's services pick you up after school tomorrow. We went upstairs and starting packing our stuff, when I turned to my sister and said, "if we leave that means we will never see Daddy again." we stopped packing and went back downstairs and told mama we changed our minds, that we wanted to stay. And she said ok, she hadn't called them yet then we went back upstairs to our room and unpacked what we had started packing.
When Daddy came back home from Rehab he would ask if anyone wanted to go to the store with him and of course who wouldn't want to go out on a car ride with Daddy?! I remember going out with him to the store and he would say, "Now, what did we come to the store to get?" We always thought he was playing around and we would tell him the things mama needed. When we would leave the store, I remember him saying, "what car did we drive here?" Again, as a young kid, we always thought Daddy was just having fun, but in reality, he was serious and I didn't understand the real struggle he was dealing with. When we got a car with the remote lock and alarm, it was fun cause Daddy could press the button and we could find the car really fast!
Daddy liked to take us out for car rides. He called it "Going to get Lost" We loved going to get lost! Daddy would take us on windy roads up and down hills, take us to see the neighborhood where he grew up, and tell us stories. Then he would say, "uh oh, I think we are lost!" We would laugh, I think a couple of times we were actually lost and he didn't know how we got where we were, but he always found his way back home.
I remember when we were young, Saturdays was chore day. We would bring our laundry to the basement and Daddy would get the laundry started. After we all brought our laundry downstairs, Daddy would give us each a couple of quarters and tell us to go to Little Short Stop (Convenient Store just down the road from our house) and go buy something. He knew by doing this that we would be gone for a few hours that would keep us out of the house so he could get the chores done. We use to go into the store and drive the workers there crazy. We would look at all the candy, 1 cent candies, 5 cent candies, 10 cent candies and then you could get fun dips for 25 cents. We would take a couple of pieces of candy go up to the register and ask the lady "if I bought this I would get change?" she would reply, "yes, you can get xx amount of those with that quarter." As kids we always thought change meant we had more to spend. Anyway, we would be in the store for hours buying candy, We always surprised our Dad when we got back home with how much candy we had in our bags from the quarters he gave us.
I remember my Daddy would sit outside on the backyard deck and read while he suntanned. While he was reading you would notice that he would have one hand holding the book and the other hand up over his head trying to sun tan under his arms on the occasion you would see him wearing his sunglasses out there while he was reading too!
After dinner and dishes were done, you would find my Daddy sitting on the couch watching his favorite tv show "Cheers," "Night Court," while doing word searches. I remember cuddling up beside him and helping him find words. One day he came home and gave me my very own wordsearch book because I liked doing them so much!
I remember one night as we were getting ready for bed and I had a loose tooth, my Daddy was tickling me and having fun. He called me to stand up and go see him as I stood up on the bed and went over to him he said, let me see your tooth, so I opened up my mouth and he wiggled my tooth right out!
Talking about tickling, my daddy loved to tickle my sister Maddie (we are about 18 months apart and shared a room). Whenever Daddy would tickle her, she would squirm one way and say "don't" and squirm the other way and say "stop" and so my dad would put it together and say "oh, you don't want me to stop?! ok," so he would tickle her some more, and we would all laugh.
I remember a time my Daddy's adopted sister Aunt Barb and her husband and daughter came to live with us for a little while. My Daddy loved to have fun, and joke around. One day as he was doing laundry, aunt Barb was sitting one the couch crocheting when my dad came upstairs from the basement and said "Barbara, I'm really sorry. I was doing the laundry and somehow your shirt got mixed in with the warm/hot wash and it shrunk your shirt. He would pull out one of our dolls clothes and show her, and she would laugh, and my dad would laugh.
After being gone all day working, once a week my Daddy use to come home with a dozen red roses for Mama. Sometimes, Daddy would give each of us kids a red rose to give to mama too!
As, I think of more about my Daddy I will post another Tribute to his page.
My Daddy was the best Daddy for me! I could not have asked for a better Daddy. Although my older siblings knew my daddy before his car accidents and saw the difference in him after his car accidents, I only knew him (or remember him) after his car accidents. Although he struggled internally he never really showed outwardly how hard of a struggle he was having. He was the best Daddy.
I miss you Daddy and I love you always and forever
Love littleone, your baby girl