Daddy Daughter Date Night

Our local Park and Rec offers a daddy/daughter date night every February for girls in grade 1-5. When I saw Analise was old enough to go, I was really excited. However, I also knew it would be a stretch for Brandon. Unlike me, he isn't one for large gatherings with lots of people. I told him about it, and he said he would go. What a man! (I think it helped that he was reading Dr. Dobson's book, "Bringing up Girls." :))

Analise was excited, but she couldn't quite grasp the concept, other than she was going out with her favorite person, her dad. The day before going out, I was again explaining to Analise what the night would be like, what she would wear, and we had a conversation  similar to this:

Me: "Analise you will wear your bridesmaid's dress, and daddy will wear a suit."

Analise: Will he wear a tortilla?  I mean a tuxedo?"

Me: complete laughter. All  I could picture was Brandon looking like Mr. Potato Head from Toy Story Three.

Anyway, this is a big deal around here; they were expecting 650 dads and daughters. One could buy corsages and arrange to have your picture taken. Girls could go to a beauty shop in town to have their nails and hair done. We went the simple route - dress up and go. I painted her nails; I curled her hair and apologized that I couldn't do anything fancy. She didn't care. Some curls and cute clips were fine with her. It was SO nice having a dress already! She was ready to go when her date got home, and I'll admit, she went out with a handsome man!

They enjoyed an evening with dinner (lasagna, green beans, bread sticks, mousse and lemonade), she did a craft, and then they danced for about an hour. She came home on a high; she was so excited!

And I observed and listened to their night while pondering these things in my heart. A dad taking a daughter to something he knew would be important to her, setting his preferences aside. He went not knowing who he would see there, a familiar face. And he went beyond that. He said only about one in ten dads actually danced with their daughters; they stood on the side and watched. Not my man - he boogied with his girl. My heart just swells with gratitude.

As they showed me their new dance moves when they got home, a song went through my head:

SCC -  Cinderella

"And I danced with Cinderella, while she was here in my arms, because I knew something the prince never knew...the clock would strike midnight, and she'll be gone..."