Dear Daddy,

Thank you for being there for me throughout all these years. I know Mom gets all the credit and the glory, but we know you were behind the scenes at every game, dance, school play, broken heart and big decision I ever made. I don't thank you nearly enough, so here are all the thank you's that you deserve.

Thank you for loving me.

I truly do not know what I would do without your constant love, support and guidance. You are my rock when the world is shaky, my knight in shining armor when the world is against me, my shield when the world is scary, my strength when the world is hard, my voice when the world is crazy, and most importantly, my dad. Thanks for loving me. I love you, too.

Thank you for showing me what strength looks like.

I know I got my high pain tolerance from you. You used to tell me "be a stick" every time I got hurt, meaning that you wanted me to be tough. I only know what tough is because I saw it demonstrated through you. Your constant working, rolling with the punches, and determination to never give up has shown me what type of person I want to be.

Thank you for letting me be myself.

You were baseball and tennis shoes while I was dance class and eyeshadow. Thank you for knowing I was not the athletic tomboy you may have wanted and supporting me anyway. You watched me turn pirouettes when you probably wanted me to be hitting a ball with you, but you told me my spins were perfect. You always took an interest in whatever I was interested in and learned about it just so you could relate to me. I cannot thank you enough for doing those things for me.

Thank you for making me believe I was worth something.

You've always been my biggest fan. You used to tell me to "smile my pretty smile," and even to this day, I know my smile is my best feature because you always remind me that I am beautiful and loved. It would be easy to get caught up in this world and forget that I am something, but with a dad like you, it's impossible to forget.

Thank you for being the example of what I should look for.

Honestly, thank you for not cleaning your guns every time I brought a boy home. Thank you for holding my hand and guiding me through life while you did nothing but love and cherish me. The love that you showed me is exactly the kind of love I am looking for from a man. I hope when you walk me down the aisle, you know that whoever you are giving me away to is someone who reminds me of you because I couldn't spend the rest of my life with anyone different. I also hope you know that you won't really be giving me away. I'll always be your little girl.