Dear Dad,

I'm finally growing up and I'm no longer your little girl. I don't know where the time went, I'm sure you don't either, but I wanted to say that I am proud to be your daughter. From day one, you have been my best friend. You were the only person I trusted to keep my Christmas presents away from my sister, and the only person I wanted to be with when I was upset. Every day when I woke up I rushed to get outside so I could go on adventures with you in the woods and be your sidekick. I know that as I've grown up that my adventures have gotten less frequent and I changed from loving critters to hating them, but spending time with you has taught me some of the biggest lessons.

Every day you lend an example that laughter is truly the best medicine. Even when I am away at school I'll find an old video of you or you will pop into the group chat with a string of emojis that somehow make perfect sense together and brighten my day. No situation is too serious to provide some comic relief. Some people may disagree with that, but you stay on the bright side of life and that to me is important. Since emerging from my weakest parts of life this far, positivity is the most important thing to me and I thank you for teaching me why it should be.

You've also provided an excellent example that hard work is the only way to get what you want. You never let Christy and I take the easy road, and you never let us quit, no matter how many tears we shed. You've worked hard from sun up to sun down every single day since your childhood and I admire you for that. Even in your retirement you still work harder than anyone I know. You've also taught me that passion and enjoying what you do will take you far in life. In my 20 years of being alive I've rarely heard you complain about the work you had to do or who you had to do it with. Even at home you kept a professional attitude about your days work.

You have raised my expectations of what love really is. I could watch all the chick flicks I wanted and no love would be as real or as strong as the love you have for your family. You may not directly say "I love you" every time you do something, but your actions sure do show it. You say "I love you" when you brave the cold to get the car to pick us up at the door, or when you watch "The Bachelor" with us instead of NCIS, or when you bring me a Joehl portion of ice cream at night.

They say that every girl marries some version of her dad, and I think I finally understand that. You see, I could never marry someone who doesn't make me laugh, who doesn't work hard, who doesn't show love the way you do. I could go on and on about how much I admire you, but I'll leave it with the 3 most important lessons you taught me. I may be growing up, but you will always be my best friend.

I love you, Dad.