I’ve thought about it all day to try and come up with something unique to say about my dad, Papaw, & Josh on Fathers Day. The thing is, what makes each of them great is how they are themselves. And maybe that’s not super original, but it’s true.

This past week we were on vacation & played putt-putt and it reminded me of Papaw. He always asked me to go play golf with him and I always said ‘no’ because I thought there was a series of underground tunnels and I’d lose my plastic golf ball forever. In middle school, I made All-County Band & invited him to our concert. He said he’d come, and even though he ended up having a scheduled work meeting in Raleigh that night (4 hours away), he told them he couldn’t go because he’d already promised to be at my concert.

Also last week, I was walking downstairs at the beach house heading toward the beach and my phone rang upstairs. My friend said “it’s your dad” and I sprinted back up the stairs to answer it before it went to voicemail. I think that says enough right there!  Growing up I never understood why he liked owning his own business. I’d hear my mom tell the story about how others thought they were crazy when he quit a good job with great benefits to do something he really wanted to do.  That always spurred me on in building Fowler Studios.  It’s definitely not always glamorous, but doing what you love is a fantastic payoff!

And then there’s Josh.  My husband, and father of our amazing little girl.  When we came home from vacation we walked into a perfectly clean house. Even though he’s spending all his extra time working lately, he spent last Sunday & Monday cleaning the house for me.  Let me tell you, acts of service is my love language, and cleaning the house is the ultimate! I always thought I’d be terrified of who Hazel might bring home one day with a declaration of love, but with a daddy like Josh to look up to, I don’t think I have too much to worry about. If she finds a guy anything like him I’ll be a proud mama.  This past week he took her on a daddy-daughter breakfast, built sandcastles with her, and took her on bike rides at the beach.  For a two year old, those are the best things in life!

Dads, you have no idea what kind of impact you have on your kids. I haven’t even seen my dad or Papaw in 6 months, yet I still think of them all the time.  Happy Fathers Day to all the dads, those who act like dads, and those who are soon to be dads!  I saw some friends on Facebook who passed away earlier this year. Even though he wasn’t with them, they still celebrated his life & how awesome he was.  I can’t imagine how hard it was for them to do that, but I know it sure would make their dad happy!

Have an awesome day, dads!

Image Credit: www.MeganBoylesPhotography.com