4 Virtues My Dad Doesn’t Know He Taught Me

My Dad doesn’t get the recognition he deserves, and it’s all my fault. He is probably the hardest working person I have ever met.

Dad was the breadwinner of our family. Thanks to his sacrifices, my siblings and I were not only able to compete and play two of the most expensive sports ever (dance and hockey) we also have many awesome memories of fun family vacations and trips to look back on.

My Dad might not know it, but I learned a lot from him. Not in the typical, “let’s sit down and have a talk about life” kind of way, but in the “actions speak louder than words” kind of way.

When my Grandpa on my Mom’s side passed away, we were all worried about how my Grandma would get by without him. He did a lot for her.My Dad stepped in and made sure that Grandma was all taken care of. He mowed the lawn, he did the maintenance on the house, he drove Grandma to church. Needless to say, my Grandma thinks my Dad is pretty special.

“Dad, my car’s broken again.“He heard that WAY too often during my time of driving beaters. Whenever one of my used cars started to smoke, or rattled so hard it couldn’t go over 60 MPH on the highway, I knew I could count on my Dad to come to the rescue.

Once, he drove an hour out of his way to replace a water pump in my car while I was working and doing hair in the salon. He scored major brownie points with that one.

We were raised in a Christian household. Although my Mom was usually the one to teach our Sunday School or Confirmation classes, my Dad also served at the church. He has been counting the offering since I can remember. This past Memorial Weekend while we were all sleeping in at the cabin, Dad was driving back home so he could count that morning at church.We haven’t had a whole lot of talks about faith, but I can see his in action every day.

Despite his amazing work ethic and skills, the recession hit our family just as hard as it hit others. During those years, my Dad was laid off multiple times. Every single time: he picked himself back up, got back out there, and landed himself another job.Did he take multiple pay cuts? You bet. Did that hold back his determination and drive? No way.

I always struggle with finding a Father’s Day gift for my Dad. You know how it goes for Grandpas, they pretty much already have everything they need. For everything my Dad has done for me and our family, he deserves to have a gift that is just as thoughtful, personal, and inspirational as he is.

Visititng Snapfish helped me create perfect Father’s Day gifts. I wanted something that he can take to work with him to remind him how much his family loves him.

My sister and my nephew over one afternoon and we had a mini photo shoot with Bean. I used the photos to create a few gifts that he can display on his desk at work. We want him to know just how much he means to us every time he looks at them!