Happy Father’s Day!

I’ve always been a bit more a daddy’s girl than a mommy’s one.

Growing up I collected baseball cards.  I really didn’t understand most of the stats on them, but I knew my daddy would sit down with me and go through them.  He’d tell me about the players and we’d sort through them.

Want to know a secret?

I really didn’t care about those cards.  It was that time we had, one on one.

Eventually I had a little brother, and he got old enough for baseball cards, too.   That special time disappeared as I started junior high and became busy with school and extra curricular activities.

While mom would worry I was going to break an arm or something at gymnastics practice, Daddy never seemed to mind driving me to practice and picking me up.

In college I took up tae kwon do.  Maybe fighting was in my blood, after all my grandpa was a professional fighter at one point and my daddy boxed as well.

Maybe I was still searching for a way to connect to with my daddy.

And then there was shooting.

I remember asking for some magazines for my Glock for Christmas.  My mom was appalled!  (She told me it wasn’t a very lady-like gift to ask for.)  But Daddy delivered.  My daddy isn’t much for telling you how he feels, but I’m pretty sure he was proud that his little girl was shooting at different target matches.  (I should mention my daddy was a police officer for 30 something years.)

We try so hard as children to please our parents, and it really doesn’t stop when we reach adulthood.  We still want that nod of approval.

This past year I’ve been hit with the reality that my parents aren’t going to be here forever.  There is going to come a time when my daddy isn’t going to be there, quietly watching and supporting me.

It’s not an easy fact to face.

I’ve mentioned that my daddy doesn’t share his feelings often.   Well, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

I’ve worked hard to let my children know every day (not only with my actions but with those 3 important words, too) that I love them.

And this Father’s Day I’ve realized I need to use those words with my parents more, too.  I need to let them know while there is still time.

So glad my sister and I decided to surprise Dad last year on his trip to Florida!)

Happy Father’s Day to all the great daddies out there, especially my daddy and my husband, who works hard trying to help me be the mommy I want to be.