by Emma Riley Sutton

Created on: June 07, 2008   Last Updated: June 25, 2008

There is no such thing as an inexpensive gift when it is given with all the love from one's heart. When a gift is given as recognition for who a person is and what that person does, it is always priceless - worth far more than anything money could ever buy. This is especially true for Father's Day gifts. When you give a Father's Day gift, even if it is from a limited budget, it is still priceless to the man who is receiving it.

Every year, my daughter and I give my husband, her Daddy, the same gift. I spend about three dollars. She and I make a coupon book for the most wonderful man in our lives. This homemade gift is appreciated and treasured. I know this because, as I was cleaning out my husband's sock drawer last week, I found last year's coupon book. He held on to it. I dug a little deeper and there was the one from two years ago. Each year, the coupons are for different things. There has been a "I do the yard work this week-end" and "anything you want for dinner" coupon.

I asked my husband why he still had these coupon books. I saw no reason for him to hold on to them. Truth be told, these coupon books are nothing more than pieces of colored construction paper held together with yarn. The "discounts" and "freebies" are written in magic marker and crayon. They aren't worth anything.

My husband looked sheepish and shrugged his shoulders. "I love them," he explained. "Go get them and I'll tell you why."

I fetched them for him and watched his face change as he flipped through the paper.

"This is when she made me oatmeal." He held it up for me to see. "She did everything all by herself, except pour the milk. Opened the microwave and pushed all the buttons all by herself."

The coupon read "Breakfast - Anything You Want." I remembered he had asked for French toast in bed that morning but our daughter, only two years old at the time, suggested she make him oatmeal. He quickly changed his mind, got out of bed, and watched her make his oatmeal. That was the first time she had ever "cooked" anything by herself. He never looked at that breakfast as lumpy, instant oatmeal. It was a meal fit for a king, prepared by his little princess.

"I dropped the camera in the duck pond," my husband said, remembering our trip to the zoo. He was now looking at the "Family Outing - Your Choice" coupon. "It was ruined; the film, too. We lost the picture of her sitting on the ground, surrounded by goats."

I had forgotten about that picture. The digital camera was ruined and gone forever,

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