Father's Day gifts with some thought
CATHY KAFRVE Bullard Banner News

Father's Day will happen on June 17th -- whether we are ready or not.

So, what in the world to do for the men in our lives that teach us what it means to be a real father? To help you get started, here's our list of favorite thoughtful ideas.

! Tell him, "I love you," every day of the year.

! Stop by his workplace on the Friday before Father's day, just to deliver a hug.

! Take him to play puttputt.

! Give him a piggy bank marked "new golf clubs" and make the first contribution. At $5 a pop, that would take you about 60 Father's Days into the future, so better plan to make other contributions throughout the year.

! Make him a "card" out of an old cigar box and fill it with old pictures of you with him.

! Snuggle into his recliner with him.

! Rent his favorite old western and pop popcorn.

! Take him to a matinee. Pick an odd time and a movie that has been out awhile, so you can be the only ones in the theater.

! Wake up early and surprise him with a doughnut run, but only if he's a morning person. If he's a night owl, show up at midnight on Saturday night with a bag of his favorite candy to share.

! Pack a picnic and take him on a scavenger hunt to find it. Of course, the picnic will be in a cooler in the trunk, but you'll have so much fun searching for clues.

! Text message or call him on the hour all day long just to say "I love you" again.

! Take him out for softserve ice cream and don't let him pay.

! Spend Sunday afternoon helping him with his high-tech gadgets.

! Help him pick out a gift for mom. Yes, this is out of place, but for some reason, dads always seem to welcome help with this.

! If you have new baby, put $5 in an envelope to start a college fund in honor of Dad because new dads always wonder how they are going to pay for college.

! Start another envelope designated "second honeymoon" for when the youngest child leaves the nest. Dad will like this even better than idea number two. Better yet, start an envelope fund for a weekend away as soon as the baby is weaned.

! Weed his vegetable garden.

! Hang shiny DVD's around his garden to keep the birds away from his tomatoes.

! Bring him fresh produce from the farmer's market and fix a summer vegetablesonly lunch with tomatoes and sliced onions, squash, green beans, all the good stuff.

! Give him a $5 gift card to the hardware store. Okay, there's not much you can buy for $5, but it's the perfect excuse to spend his own money on that new chainsaw he's been longing for.

If you do everything on this list, it will only cost you about $50. That includes two tickets for the matinee which are actually $5.50 these days.

We hope this will help get you started with your own, individually unique way of honoring that unique guy in your life.

Each dad is unique; they come in all shapes and sizes. They are all ages.

They get the role the traditional way or sometimes the role finds them by accident. Sometimes, life brings a blended family or an unexpected adoption or the comfort of inheriting our own grandchildren.

Maybe a mom looks up one day and realizes that now she has to be dad, too.

All "dads" have their own unique ways of filling the role of father to their kiddoes.

However and wherever the role finds him, every kid needs someone special to be dad. It takes a certain kind of maturity and self-sacrifice to fill the role well.

To all the dads out there, whether you have been at it for only a few hours or over five decades, we want to say, "Way to go! You rock!"

To everyone else, we hope this list helps you encourage the dads in your life, Father's Day and the rest of the year, too.

!

Cathy Primer Krafve, a.k.a. Checklist Charlie, lives in Flint with her husband, the father of their three children. She welcomes allcomments, especially lists, and can be reached at the Bullard Banner News.