A Dad's Day Dilemma

Father's Day should be easy. I mean, we live with the guy. We should have oodles of ideas of what to do to make his day special.

Ellie and Talie had no problem finding a gift for Dad. Ellie put together a booklet of photos, while Talie made a rather elaborate card with glue, buttons, and more glue.

But I was stumped, and so was Caitlin. She rejected idea after idea — too boring, too predictable, not "Dad" enough.

And then we found the perfect project: a personalized memo pad, printed with one of her illustrations. Caitlin loved the idea of her artwork replicated 100 times for Dad's daily viewing and appreciation.

While she started brainstorming ideas, I called Staples to see if they did this sort of thing. They did, but it would have to be sent out, so the timing would be tight.

Caitlin settled on an ocean theme; Dad loves sailing, which dovetailed perfectly with her "Finding Nemo" phase. It took a few explanations to get the art small enough and near the edge, so there would actually be room left to use the memo sheets.

(Suggestion: Rule off a "draw here" border along the top of the paper or along the left side with a line that can later be erased, or cover the "memo" space with a sheet of colored paper.)

After a few attempts, an adorable school of fish and sharks were floating along the page, complete with silly "Nemo" talk bubbles.

We set off for Staples, artwork safely ensconced in a stiff folder. The copy guy waffled a bit on the finish date, and in the end, the notepad wasn't done by Father's Day. But Caitlin rolled with it, secure in the knowledge that she had the perfect gift. Something practical that Dad would use, yet special, because it was a part of her to treasure, too.