When they ask about Daddy?

[AuntMargo]

My granddaughter, has never met her father, he is not interested, lives miles away too. She is now 3 and is aware of the word daddy and who they are. We are waiting for the "Wheres my daddy" question and have no idea how to answer.

For this in the same boat how have you dealt with this please.

Age appropriate honesty coupled with explanations of how other important people in her life do the job of a father, and that all families look different.
My situation is slightly different, as my oldest can remember her dad. However, I’d say that’s the best advice I got and it probably fits here too.
It’s hard, as most kids will see their dad at some point. Not many genuinely do not have one for whatever reason - in my experience anyway.

Daddy went away?

That's what my friend was told, it wasn't a lie either, obviously simplistic though. Details can be added later when age appropriate

Surely "daddy went away" can lead to wondering why and if it was something they caused.

I would say that not everyone is ready to be a parent when they have a child and he thought it was best that other people grandad/step dad/ uncle whoever took over instead because they were already really good daddies.

My child is growing up without a father and I would say don’t let your emotions colour your response. My daughter is 5 and has never asked why doesn’t she have a dad or where is he. We read lots of books about different family make ups including the Great Big Book of Families, and All Kinds of Families by Sophie Henn are two of my favourite. If she is loved and adored by her family she won’t feel as if she is missing anything. If she asks about him I would be factual so “he lives in the city”, “his name is x”, “he and your mummy liked listening to music together”. If she asks to meet him you can say I don’t know where he is living at the moment but I will help you look for him when you are older.

I have never met my father. When she is young she doesn’t really need to know much other then he lives in a different city. As she gets older you can then explain that he just wasn’t ready to be a dad. If she has lots of loving people around her she won’t feel too much of a hole to be honest.
I don’t think about him much if ever. I can honestly say I don’t feel hurt by it.