Daddy’s Little Girl
June 25th, 2004
As he sat down on the couch to read the paper, Lee noticed the photo album on the coffee table. Immediately, he knew Amanda had been reminiscing over the pictures. Today was a special day. It would be a hectic day, and he wanted to enjoy a moment of peace to reflect, also.
Several years ago, Amanda had gone through all the photographs and made up special albums for Phillip, Jamie, and Alisha that chronicled their lives. Of course, she’d made duplicates for them to keep. The one on the coffee table was Alisha’s.
He picked up the album and opened it. He wanted to start at the beginning. The first item in the album was a copy of Alisha’s birth announcement. The original was still proudly displayed in a prominent place on their bedroom wall.
He never knew that one little life could change his so dramatically. For the better.
The past came flying back as he turned the page and looked at the angelic face of the infant in Amanda’s arms. It still amazed him that they’d created this precious life.
Dotty proudly holding her granddaughter and beaming down at her, the love evident in her eyes.
Alisha being held by Jamie and Phillip, who each looked like they were scared out of their minds to hold such a tiny infant. Frankly, he’d been scared out of his mind, too, the first time he held her. When the doctor placed her in his arms, doubts flooded through him. First, he feared dropping her. Then when she smiled and cooed at him, he knew he’d never let her fall.
Alisha getting her first bath, splashing water in the sink as Amanda attempted to bathe the squirming infant. His daughter was like a fish in water. She loved bath time. While out shopping one afternoon, Dotty found a baby seat that was placed in the tub. When they sat Alisha in it, she’d play and splash for hours, if they let her.
Amanda, Alisha, and Dotty covered in flour after an afternoon of baking cookies. He recalled how he’d come in from the stable to find himself engulfed in a cloud of white. His daughter had somehow managed to be covered head to toe in flour. Amanda and Dotty, also covered in white, had been standing by the kitchen counter, laughing hysterically.
More pictures, and the years flew by. Christmas photos of Alisha sitting on Santa’s lap, standing in front of the Christmas tree, and opening her gifts.
Birthday parties where she had icing smeared all over her face and held up her fingers, indicating how old she was. Well, the first few years Amanda’s hand was visible, holding up Alisha’s tiny one.
Then the photos went in a different direction.
Where had his little girl gone?
The one who had pranced around the room, twirling in her ballerina tutu? Several times Alisha had announced that she’d be giving a performance after dinner and invited the whole family to watch her dance.
Who’d worn dresses trimmed with lace and bows. It seemed like every outfit had something frilly on it.
Who liked to have tea parties for her dolls and invited him to join them. Always the gracious hostess, who poured Kool-Aid from a small teapot into even tinier teacups and placed a cookie on his plate for him to nibble on.
Who played dress-up. In fact, Amanda had a special box inside their closet that had been used just for that purpose. Whenever she stopped at a yard sale, she looked for things Alisha would enjoy dressing in. One time, Amanda came home with several gowns and shortened the skirts so Alisha could wear them.
Who only wanted to wear princess costumes on Halloween.
When had his little girl changed?
He couldn’t pinpoint an exact date, but the pictures told how old she was when the transformation occurred.
Sometime around her eleventh birthday, his daughter had turned into a tomboy.
Instead of dresses and frills, she wore jeans. Not that she hadn’t worn jeans before, but that was all she seemed to wear these days. No longer did she want anything to do with something “girly,” as she called it.
He smiled at the picture of her and her bothers covered in mud. After a heavy thunderstorm, they’d gone out to check the property for damage. One thing led to another, and they returned covered from head to foot. Amanda had put her foot down firmly and told them they couldn’t enter the house, not even the mudroom, in their condition. The solution had been for Lee to hose each of them down, and a dripping body had been met at the door with a huge bath towel.
Sports now played a big part in her life. At one time or another, she’d played baseball, basketball, and even hockey. But soccer became her passion, and he had to admit she was good at the game. She joined a team and played for several years, until another obsession took over.
Horses. She’d always enjoyed riding, and one day she decided she wanted to be a cowgirl. She took lessons in roping and competed in junior rodeos. Several medals and ribbons that she’d won were proudly displayed alongside her soccer trophies.
Alisha surprised him last year when she announced she was taking auto mechanics as one of her electives at school. Actually, he was very proud of her. That she wanted to know more than how to change a tire. But he had a hard time keeping her away from his ‘Vette. Just like Phillip, she wanted to tinker with it. He compromised by buying her an old clunker that she could mess around with to her heart’s content. She became quite a competent grease monkey. He’d even arranged for Alisha to meet with Rhonda for private lessons.
Even when boys started noticing her and she them, she stayed pretty much a tomboy. Oh, she wore a dress or skirt now and then. But nine times out of ten, she’d be in her usual cowgirl attire of jeans and hat, or coveralls, helping them work on their cars.
He dreaded the day she’d go on her first date. So far, she hadn’t expressed any interest in one particular boy. She’d gone out on group dates, but that was it. He thanked his lucky stars. He had a feeling that would all change this coming year. Of course, he planned to thoroughly check out any boy his daughter expressed an interest in. He planned to use all of his intelligence resources to make sure no man ever took advantage of her. He shook his head. That time would come soon enough. He didn’t want to dwell on it. Yet.
Would his little girl ever come back?
“It’s almost time to get ready for the party.” Amanda entered the den and sat down next to him. “I see you’ve been looking at the album.”
“It just seemed like the thing to do today.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
“Hard to believe, isn’t it? Our baby is sixteen today. It seems like yesterday I gave birth to her.”
Lee laid the album on the coffee table, then rose and held out his hand to his wife. “Shall we?” He placed his hands on her cheeks and kissed her lips. “We made an amazing child. Didn’t we?”
“She’s the best of both of us.”
They walked toward their bedroom, his hand on the small of her back. “I was surprised when she told us she wanted to have a family party.”
“Well, she is having that party next weekend with all her friends at the rodeo. But this is special since it’s really her birthday today.”
“How did she talk us into allowing her to have two parties again?” Lee opened their bedroom door.
Amanda laughed. “She looked at you with her big brown eyes, and that was all it took.”
“Oh, yeah.” Lee smiled. Plus, the fact that the party at the rodeo wasn’t costing him much, since her friends were providing the entertainment, and it would be taking place after one of the shows. All he and Amanda were providing was the birthday cake.
An hour later, Lee waited at the bottom of the stairs for his ladies. He checked his watch. They still had plenty of time to get to the hotel. Everyone should be there by the time they arrived. It amazed him how many people would be attending. Emily had flown in from London. Billy and Jeannie. Leatherneck. Francine. Even his Uncle had driven up from his retirement home in Florida. So many people who touched his daughter’s life would be there to celebrate.
Jamie had flown in earlier that week after completing another photography assignment for “National Geographic.” He barely spent time at home anymore. Always flying off to one place or another. He’d photographed endangered species all over the world, erupting volcanoes, space shuttle launches, and so many other things that Lee had lost count. He still used his bedroom at the house when home. It’d be a waste of money to rent an apartment when he was rarely there. Because of a deadline, they’d hardly seen him since he came home. He’d spent most of his time at the office in the darkrooms.
Phillip had married his college sweetheart a few years ago, and they’d purchased a home in the area. Phillip’s wife, Miranda, had helped Amanda with the party arrangements--from booking rooms for out of town guests and talking to caterers, to the decorations in the room they’d reserved. He smiled as he thought of Phillip. He never in a hundred years would’ve guessed that the boy would follow in his mother’s and his footsteps and enter the world of espionage. It shouldn’t have surprised him though; his stepson had always loved tinkering with gadgets. Phillip was now Leatherneck’s assistant in the Quartermaster’s Office.
Dotty, of course, had become the event coordinator, as she liked to call herself. He was amazed at the stamina of his mother-in-law. She and Kurt still flew regularly and had an active life, filled with projects and family. He hoped when he and Amanda were that age, they’d be as spry as those two.
“I’m ready.” Amanda came down the stairs and joined him. As usual, his wife was stunning in a little black dress and heels.
“Maybe you should go up and see what’s keeping her.”
“I’m ready,” Alisha replied.
The vision standing on the top step couldn’t be his daughter.
Could it?
His little girl?
Alisha smiled down at her parents. She wore a gorgeous blue dress that showed off her blooming figure. The person standing up there wasn’t his little girl. Not anymore. She was a beautiful young woman.
His little girl had grown up.
She walked carefully down the stairs in a pair of heels. “Shall we go?”
Lee held the front door open and made a sweeping gesture with his arm. “After you two beautiful ladies.”
“Oh, Daddy.” Alisha blushed and rolled her eyes.
No matter what her age, in his eyes and heart, she would always be daddy’s little girl.
The End
Story Notes:
Disclaimer: Scarecrow and Mrs. King and its characters belong to WB and Shoot the Moon Productions. No infringement is intended. This is written for entertainment purposes only. Please do not redistribute or reproduce this story without my permission.
Thanks: Rita and Miss Edna, you make my stories readable by catching all my grammar and other errors.
Note: A special thanks to Lynn, who inspired this story by wondering if Lee and Amanda’s daughter would be a “girly” girl or a tomboy. This is my answer to that question.
Thanks: Rita and Miss Edna, you make my stories readable by catching all my grammar and other errors.
Note: A special thanks to Lynn, who inspired this story by wondering if Lee and Amanda’s daughter would be a “girly” girl or a tomboy. This is my answer to that question.