Dear Dad,

As your Daughter, I think it's time that I properly thank you for all of your hard work and support over the years. Not only have you provided for our family and helped us sustain a happy and fulfilled life, you did so with a smile on your face. The joy you get in seeing me happy is more than I could ever ask for, and a trait that I someday hope to have if I'm ever lucky enough to have a family of my own.

As a little girl, you not only taught me how to throw a baseball and hold a hockey stick, you also sat through mindless hours of ballet recitals and gymnastics meets. Despite your boredom or the outcome, you always congratulated me and never let me forget how talented you thought I was.

I used to step on your feet while Frank Sinatra played in the background and you would dance around the living room. You would throw me in the pool in the summer time and then quickly grab a towel when I got water in my eye and regardless of your busy schedule, you were a good sport when my sister got too old for Barbies and happily played along as Ken. When you would go away on business trips, I would find a note on my pillow that reminded me of "how much you loved me".

My first day of school you took pictures and shed one tear when I left the house with my backpack and lunch box. When I returned home you were eager to hear everything, and I was just as excited to tell you every detail.

When I fell off my bike and scraped my elbow, you held me while I cried and fixed it with a bandage and then reminded me every time I went for a bike ride to wear a helmet and elbow pads.

Every night you tucked me in bed, gave me a kiss and always made sure there were no monsters or aliens hiding in my closet.

As a young adult, you taught me what it means to really work hard. By watching you over the years, I have adapted your work ethic and I hope everyday that I will be as successful as you.

We go to dinner and music will play in the background while you ask me questions about school, friends and my plans for the future. I wake up on summer mornings to find you washing my car and in the winter shoveling it out of the driveway. Next to my keys there's almost always a cup of coffee waiting for me with a note from you that reminds me to "have a good day".

When I left for college you moved me into my dorm room and took a million pictures. You said you weren't sad, but Mom spilled your secret that you cried the whole way home. When I came home for Thanksgiving you couldn't wait to hear about my classes and my new friends.

When I'm having a bad day, its like you know and you never forget to tell me how talented and smart you think I am -- the perfect confidence booster. You taught me what it means to be treated with the utmost respect and how to stick up for myself. Thanks to you I know to never settle for less than I deserve.

No matter what happens, I always know that you will do everything you can to keep me safe. You still come in and kiss me goodnight and close my closet doors. I may roll my eyes when you remind me to "drive with two hands on the wheel" or "make sure my apartment door is locked", but deep down I am so thankful that you care about my safety.

So, for all of that, I wanted to say thanks. Thanks for teaching me what it means to be a hardworking individual. Thanks for showing me what it's like to have doors held open for me. Thanks for never letting me forget how special you think I am. Thanks for supporting me in every decision I make. Thanks for spoiling me with not only things, but with unconditional love.

But most of all, thanks for being the greatest Dad a Daughter could ask for.

I love you more than every grain of sand on all the beaches,

Your Daughter