How do FamilyFun readers show Dad how much they care? On the following pages, you'll find their favorite gifts, celebrations, outings, and more.
- Hold an Ice-cream Tasting
- Take Dad on a Surprise Adventure
If celebrating Father's Day were a competition, the Parsons family would win the prize for sweetest tradition. Every year, the Landrum, South Carolina, clan holds a tasting contest in honor of dad Terry, who has a special fondness for ice cream. Mom Susan buys eight varieties and wraps the pints in paper towels to hide the flavors. After lunch, Mom, Dad, and kids Cheston, age 20, Riley, 17, Samuel, 12, and Ellis, 4, gather in the kitchen. Susan serves small scoops from each pint and hands out homemade ballots, and then the rest of the family gets to work. "Everyone has to guess the flavor or at least some of the ingredients of each," says Susan. "It's a lot of fun. And the winner gets to keep the Daddy's Big Scoop trophy until the following year."
Eight-year-old Truth Muller of Rock Hill, New York, likes to take his dad on a mystery road trip for Father's Day. "We pick a spot, give my husband a few clues, like 'pack a bathing suit' or 'wear your hiking boots,' then head off," says mom Maura. Two of their most successful trips so far have been to the Houdini Museum in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and to the Land of Make Believe amusement and water park in Hope, New Jersey. "The Houdini Museum was actually an accident," recalls Maura. "We hopped in the car for our 2005 Father's Day trip to the Lackawanna Coal Mine Tour in Scranton, but as we neared the exit on the highway, we passed a billboard for the Houdini Museum. My husband got so excited he nearly jumped out of his seat while driving. 'I've always wanted to go to the Houdini Museum!' he shouted. What could we do? My son and I just looked at each other and shrugged. We went to the Houdini Museum and had a spectacular day."
