A Special Father's Day Tribute

To My Sweetheart, Her Hero
(written by Abby Weingarten, in honor of her partner Mark)

Yes, it was my belly that grew big and my body that delivered our incredible daughter one year ago.

But you were the first one to hold her. Your eyes, your arms and your touch were her introduction to the earth.

I can’t imagine a better way to start a life.

I am constantly in awe of you as a father. I am mesmerized by the poetic vision of big, strong dad and tiny baby entwined.

Without your devotion, this bliss would never have been possible. Without your love, she wouldn’t be her, and I wouldn’t be me.

I can see you in her hilarious facial expressions, in her big, dark eyes and turned-up nose and the curls beginning to form at the back of her head. Sometimes I sneak into the nursery just to catch a glimpse of you rocking her to sleep in the middle of the night.

When you tell me she likes her eggs scrambled a certain way or that she prefers to have her blanket wrapped just so around her chest, I can hear the tender triumph in your voice. Knowing how to make her happy is your most prided skill – one you admirably work to improve upon every single day.

Each morning, you’re there to greet her when she wakes up, and every afternoon, you read her favorite books and play her sweet songs on the guitar.

On Father’s Day and every day, I honor you. I thank you for blessing me with this miraculous child, for making our house a home, for cooking us delicious dinners and re-tiling our floors, for the way you look at me and the way you unconditionally nurture and protect our baby girl.

I may have brought her into this world, but you’re the one that makes it go around. Also in honor of Father's Day, please revisit these great stories written by or about Sarasota's daddies.
Caleb and the D.G.C.
Exceptional Emergence
Lycia's Birth: Through Daddy's Eyes
Father's Day 2009: Growing Fathers in Sarasota