To my own father: We both loved Saturday mornings when we watched TV together…Tarzan and Ramar of the Jungle.  Walking to the little grocery store on Sunday to buy Thomas’ English muffins to have with breakfast…you always bought me a Charlotte Russe…if I close my eyes now, I can see the mound of whipped cream topped with a cherry.  Going to the park across the street with you and my best friend, Jane, and her father…eagerly running ahead to grab swings next to each other so both proud papas could push us so high, we were almost parallel with the top bar.   And bowling together as a father/daughter team when I was in college…winning the little trophy that was awarded to the highest scorers…we were both so proud!

To my husband: You were always there for all three of our children, especially when they were troubled…or in trouble.  You never scolded at those times…you supported them 100% and let them know that you loved them.  You encouraged them to follow their dreams and worked hard to provide for them.   When our oldest son was a toddler, you took a second job to supplement your teacher’s income…after working all day­; you had a hurried dinner and then worked at a convenience store till midnight.  When you had your first heart attack at age 36, our three children were all under 10 years old and I know you thought you would never live to see them grow up.  But you persevered and, even though you had your third heart attack a month before our daughter’s wedding, you flew half-way across the country so you could walk her down the aisle and give her away.   I know how proud you were then…that was in 2002…and now we live with her and her amazing 5-year old son…what a special bond you are forging with him.

To my oldest son: As a SAHD, you constantly impress me with your loving yet firm approach to parenting.  Your twins are almost 10-years old already and you’ve supported them in their varied interests in every stage of their development.  They are bright, loving, caring and funny and a joy to be with and I am proud of the father that you are to them.

To my younger son: You’ve been a father for one year now – and I know that your beautiful daughter is more precious to you than diamonds and gold. I see the way you interact with her – gently, lovingly…cherishing her and teaching her and nurturing her. I look forward to seeing the joy in your eyes time after time as she reaches each milestone and accomplishes new goals.

I always encourage moms to get a copy of my book – but there are so many hands-on dads around these days (hurray for them!!!!), I hope they will take a look at it as well.

• It’s an activity book – 100 simple crafts projects and much more!
• It’s a memory book – every other page has a lined area where parents can record important highlights
• It’s a parenting guide – 100 tips on building self-esteem

Give it a try – money-back guarantee: click on the book cover on the right side bar of my blog…$2.99 for the Kindle version and $23.50 for the signed print edition (when you get to Amazon, go to new copies and click on the copies from MoneyPennyPress…this is the only distributor with new copies.

You can’t get much of real value these days for $23.50…that’s a saving of 50% off the cover price.  Start your summer off with a plan of activities…the school bells will be ringing before you know it – help your child have fun this summer while improving reading readiness  and other important school skills.