What started out 10 years ago as a challenge from my mom to my dad, turned into unforgettable moments spent camping and having fun between father and daughters in a tradition of an annual father-daughter camping trip/vacation.
When I was younger, my mom would be one of my sister and I's main caretakers, and at one point she started to get fed up with my dad since he worked all the time and didn't appreciate or notice all of the things she did to drive us to our activities or cook dinner. So she challenged him to take us on a trip to experience what daily life is like for her, at least to some extent.
This one small challenge to him started a tradition that my sister and I look forward to every year and has taken us to so many amazing places, including around Lake Superior, Yosemite/Sequoia National Parks, and even a two-week trip around Europe. These many trips have allowed us to bond in ways that wouldn't have been otherwise possible and create memories that we will never forget.
Some years, the trip has to be altered, or like this year, skipped, but somehow we always manage to spend quality time together traveling somewhere every summer. Without these experiences, and growing my relationship with my parents over the last couple years, we would not be as close as we currently are.
My dad mentions all the time that he will be happy to take us on father-daughter trips even after we get married someday, which I'm grateful for. I wish that more families had the opportunities to spend some quality time with their children distraction-free and bond over the types of experiences I've been able to have.
I hope to keep this tradition alive for as long as possible, because missing out on spending quality time traveling somewhere with my dad this summer, I have a small hole in my hear, where this quality time spent together would normally fill the hole.
I hope that someday my future husband will be willing and excited to start this type of tradition with our daughters to create the types of memories I've been able to create with my dad and sister. I would even be willing to start this type of tradition with my future sons someday, if they so desire or if I feel like we don't spend very much quality time together.
