They say that any man can be a father, but it takes a real man to be a dad.
This couldn’t be more true for you. Saying “father” feels so informal {yes, even if it sounds formal}. When I think of the word dad, I think of someone who is selfless, strong, caring, and loving; someone who is just strict enough to make boundaries and expectations known, but also someone who knows how to have fun and let you live a little. Hands down, all of those qualities are those that you possess.
In the 30 years since I was born, I’ve heard this same story from my mom time and time again…
“When you were born, the doctor looked right at me and said, ‘In all of the years I’ve been delivering babies, I have never delivered one who looked more like their father than your daughter.’ And your Dad was in complete awe of you from the moment he saw you.”
Although I clearly don’t remember any of that, I can confidently say that I was just as in awe with you, too. From the time I can remember, I have been a ‘Daddy’s Girl.’
You are the first man I ever loved, my hero, my support system, and my safe haven. Even though I am now grown, married and have a family of my own, you are still all of those things to me. You have given me the best things in life: your time, care, and love. And sometimes even a bit of tough love {I’ll admit, I deserved it}. The older I get the more I realize how important it is to have a dad like you. Not only for all that you’ve done for me, but for the example you have set on working hard, loving with your whole heart, and giving of yourself with no expectation of receiving something in return.
There are so many memories I keep close to my heart.
From going up north to snowmobile or ride the four wheelers to waking up in the middle of the night just to go with you on your snowplow jobs. From walking me down the aisle to being there for the birth of my children and seeing the look on your face when we told you Camden’s full name. The time that I have spent with you has meant more than I could ever say. I want to thank you for so many things. Words just don’t seem adequate to express how grateful I am. Thank you for acting like a kid when I was a kid, for acting like a friend when I needed a friend, and being a parent when I needed you to be a parent. I always knew that even when I messed up, you would be there to support me and guide me, even if you did end up grounding me {but let’s face it, that never lasted as long as you said it would… lol}.
You have been a constant support in my life, someone I know I can count on no matter what.
I have no doubt that I got my compassion and big heart from you. The love you show for the people who are most important to you is unconditional. Seeing you with my boys with such pride, joy, and love on your face is one of the greatest things in the world. The quote, “The only thing better than having you as my dad, is my children having you as their grandpa,” is so true. There is no one I can think of that would be a better grandpa than you and I hope you know how much they love you.
On this Father’s Day, and every day, I want you to know that you are the greatest man I know. I am so incredibly blessed to have you in my life. I thank God every day that you’re my dad, he certainly blessed me with the greatest one. Thank you for giving me such an incredible life and for loving me unconditionally.
