6 Ways to Celebrate Dad on Father's Day and Throughout the Year
Ardith Stephanson
5 min read
Father’s Day is just around the corner, which means it’s time to think about gifts for Dad.
We’ve all heard the jokes about buying Dad a tie, or a pair of socks. It can be a struggle to figure out exactly what’s best for the man who played a big part in your life, and continues to be there for you.
Maybe you want to honour more than just your own father. If you have children, Father’s Day is an opportunity for them to appreciate their own dad and their grandpa, while you celebrate your father, grandfather, and husband. Women and men alike want to celebrate dads, grandpas, stepdads and maybe even uncles or other special men in their lives.
If you’re wondering: What’s the best gift for Father’s Day? We’re here to help, with suggestions that go beyond material items, and certainly improve upon a tie or a pair of socks.
Here are 6 ways to celebrate Dad on Father’s Day - and throughout the year. After all, Dad is there for you on more than one day a year!
1. Write down the reasons you love Dad
This is a great one for any age, but young children in particular would enjoy this one. Give your kids some paper and crayons and ask them why they love Daddy (or why they love Grandpa). They can draw their answers, and older children can write theirs. You can write notes for your father.
These “why I love you” notes can be presented a number of ways. Put them in an envelope and leave them somewhere to find on Father’s Day. Mail them to Dad or Grandpa. Put them in a jar and let Dad take them out when he needs a boost.
2. Create videos for Dad
This is another wonderful way to capture how you feel about this special man. These special Father’s Day gifts don’t have to be long. Think about creating some snippets that will allow him to treasure you and your voice for years to come.
Here are a few ideas:
A special memory from childhood
Something dad did that made a difference in your life
Your children telling Dad or Grandpa why they love him
A song
A poem
Bring all the videos together into one file, and let Dad sit back and enjoy them time and again.
3. A poster for Dad’s name
Another one that’s fun for kids: why not create a poster to greet Dad when he wakes up on his special day. Take Dad’s name and turn it into all the reasons he’s appreciated.
Here’s an example.
ADAM: Adventurous; Diligent; Attentive; Marvelous
You might have to help younger children with ideas, but once you get rolling, they will likely enjoy being creative. The kids can add drawings, ribbons, stickers, balloons, or decorate the poster however they want.
4. Take Dad somewhere he loves
If you can, let Dad do what he wants on his big day. This doesn’t have to involve spending a lot of money. Maybe he enjoys going to the park or a favourite museum. Perhaps there’s a sporting event you can attend together. Maybe a picnic or a game of bocce ball is up his alley.
To give this gift, make a card that lets Dad know he gets to choose an activity for his day. If you can’t see Grandpa on his special day, let him know he can book a date when you can be together. Dad may want to simply spend the afternoon in the hammock and have someone else barbecue supper for him.
5. Create a photo collage
This special memento is a bit more work, since it involves actually printing out photos - who does that anymore? But bringing together some special memories of past and present is a wonderful way to appreciate Dad or Grandpa. Then put them in a small photo album, or on a poster collage to hang on the wall, and Dad will have a keepsake to last a lifetime.
6. Bring it all together into one celebration
Imagine being able to combine these ideas into one amazing memento, one that Dad will be able to access time and time again. That’s possible with a digital tool like memoryKPR.
This easy-to-use platform makes it easy to assemble a digital memory book, for instance, and create a story for Dad. Use it to combine our 5 other ideas to build an online album for Dad, Daddy or Grandpa.
The “story” can include each of these mementos since most file types are accepted: documents, like the reasons you love dad, or the poster of dad’s name
pictures, replacing a photo collage with an easier way to collect photos from across the years
videos, like those snippets of special memories or the kids singing a song
mementos of the trip to the museum or the sporting event, like images from the day or a photo of the ticket stub
the recipe of Dad’s favourite meal, which you’ll prepare for him on Father’s Day
It’s easy to bring together videos, photos, audio recordings, documents such as written messages and more. You can even invite others to contribute by sending an email. Include your siblings or grandpa’s other grandchildren.
When you’re done, it’s simple to share the final story with Dad and Grandpa across multiple platforms, even for the technologically challenged: send a link by email. Dad can choose to share on social media if he wants.
By using memoryKPR you’ll get a complete celebration of Dad, including as many people and as many memories as you want. You’ll also have a wonderful memento. After all, when it comes to remembering Dad, it’s worth having something that you can keep as well.
Epilogue
It isn’t always easy to come up with Father’s Day gift ideas. And some of the most special presents don’t have to be material items.
When you’re ready for a better way to honour dad than a tie or a pair of socks, remember our 6 ways to celebrate dad on Father’s Day. In fact, when you use memoryKPR and its tools to collaborate, save and share memories, it’s easy to honour Dad all year long.
Ardith Stephanson is a freelance writer and journalist who shares some of her own stories at theardizan.com