Father’s Day is coming up. It reminds me of one of my favorite childhood memories – milkshake night. My father was a busy man. He owned the family business.  It seemed like he never got any time off. When he did get time off, he was really tired. Yet as tired as he was, my sister and I both knew that deep down he really loved us.

Every Saturday night was milkshake night. Our freezer was always filled with tons of ice cream. My sister and I would alternate. One week I would choose the flavor the next week she would choose the flavor. We chose flavors like strawberry, vanilla with chocolate chips, mint and chocolate chip, or just plain chocolate. It was so much fun!

We had an old-fashioned blender. Dad would pull out the blender and stand right beside us. In my case I would grab the spoon, my father would help me scoop up the ice cream, then I would grab the bottle of syrup. He would guide my hands as I squeezed it in until he said, “Okay that’s enough stop.” Dad was there to guide us every step of the way until we were done making the milkshake. Then we got to enjoy the milkshakes together as a family.

Milkshake night was our one-on-one father-daughter bonding time with Dad. If it ever seemed like Dad was so busy that he didn’t have time for his family, milkshake night was his way of reassuring us of his love for us. It was his simple way of saying, “I’m here for you and I love you.”