Daddy's girl

Fathers be good to your daughters
Daughters will love as you do...

I'm sitting at Caribou with Charlie on a Saturday morning date that cost $4.03 and included two free bagels from Einstein's (become a fan on Facebook for some great offers!) and two cups of Caribou coffee. We like cheap dates. :-) Our Saturday morning dates bring back memories of dates I had long before I met Charlie...

Saturday morning would roll around, and Caroline and I would get so excited. Saturday mornings were date mornings with Daddy (and yes, I will always call him Daddy. Some things just shouldn't change).

Caroline and I would take turns picking where we would go for breakfast. She almost always chose Cracker Barrel. She loved the little bottles of syrup you get with your pancakes. And the hash brown casserole....oh.my.goodness.

I was a fan of Dunkin' Donuts. We never got to eat that kind of junk during the week, but when Saturday came, it was free game. I am only still slightly addicted to the chocolate doughnuts. Wherever we ended up, it was our special time with Daddy. It didn't matter what we talked about, or what we ate, or where we went. We were getting to spend time with the man in our lives.

Every dad should date his daughter. Little girls need to know that their dad loves them. Dating your daughter sets high expectations and fosters self-esteem, self-respect, and acceptance. When I think about my relationship with my dad, I recognize that I never doubted or questioned his love for me. I knew that I was free to ask questions and make mistakes.

Mostly, I felt secure. And that security allowed me to grow in a healthy way. Everyone carries baggage into relationships, but I feel that I carried so much less because of the positive, loving, healthy relationship with my father. I watched the way he treated my mom and cared and provided for our family. He loved us well, disciplined us well, and nurtured us well.

Because of our relationship and the example he set for our family, I had high expectations for the person that I would spend the rest of my life with. I wasn't going for someone who was mediocre because I hadn't experienced a mediocre love.

So dads out there, date your daughters.
It's the best gift you can give them.