Daddy-Daughter Dinner

On Saturday night Addie and I attended the 2nd annual Daddy-Daughter Dinner at our local Chick-fil-A. This was our first Daddy-Daughter event of any kind. It will not be our last. I was pretty excited about the night all week long. We arrived at 4:45 pm, 15 minutes prior to our scheduled dinner time, so that we could have plenty of time for the valet parking provided by employees from a local car wash. In preparation for the night I vacuumed out the car, Armor-alled it and had Monica run it through the wash that morning. So on this very mild February evening I pulled up to the tent at Chick-fil-A with my beautiful date in tow. We were dressed casually, as you can see in the picture, but we still strolled up the red carpet to get our picture taken by a local photographer (who posted the pictures online and is providing a free 5x7 picture). Addie became a little more excited when they gave her a pretty rose. She didn't let that flower out of her sight all evening.

When we entered we were greeted warmly and took our seats at a table complete with flowers and a candle. Also on the table were pieces of paper for the father and daughter to use to spark conversation. Needless to say we didn't avail ourselves of these materials. Addie was pretty preoccupied by her fries and the crying baby nearby. Typically at Chick-fil-A they play contemporary Christian music but on this night they were playing daddy-daughter type songs like Cinderella by Steven Curtis Chapman, Butterfly Kisses, a sweet little song by John Mayer, and others. Let me tell you the mix of the candles, flowers, and music made me a little emotional. Looking around at the other dads/daughters I realized this time I have with Addie is pretty precious. Most of these dads may just need conversation starters with their daughter because they don't get to spend a lot of time together, but being a part time stay-at-home dad I have a unique opportunity with Addie that most dads don't have. I became cognizant of this in that moment and I felt blessed beyond belief. I love that little girl.

Other highlights of the dinner included a free cow stuffed animal for Addie (Chick-fil-A's "mascot" I guess you could say), free food coupons for future visits, and a free car wash coupon for Green Lantern. We capped of our dinner with a chocolate shake for me and a bowl of ice cream for Addie.

All in all it was a wonderful hour and a half together with my daughter. She looked so cute and I couldn't have been prouder. I just hope she will enjoy these type of events as she gets older, I know I will.