“No, it’s great. Listen,” Phillip said taking the phone from her and starting to read. “What is blue and smells like red paint?” Aoife looked at him as if he had just cut the cheese.

“It’s a dad joke app. This is one of the jokes. C’mon, what is blue and smells like red paint?” he asked again.

She turned to look at her mother for help, sighed and gave a big shrug. Looking to the heavens she desperately said, “I give up. I don’t know. Please tell me.”

“Blue paint,” her dad said and both he and his wife erupted with laughter.

“Ugh!” Aoife said disdainfully. “That is the lamest thing I’ve ever heard,” she said taking the phone out of his hand and staring at the screen.

“That’s what dad jokes are, sweetie! Lame! We love them!” Phillip said enthusiastically

She turned to her mother and in shock asked, “You actually like them too, ma?”

Her mother kept laughing and nodding which made her turn back to the screen. She tried reading a few more jokes but couldn’t even crack a smile.

“Do you want me to send the app to you?” he asked, trying to hold on to his sincerity. With continued disdain and the same ‘cut cheese’ expression on her face, she handed his phone back to him, stood up, shook her head and made her way to the kitchen to find something to eat. “Ice cream,” she said. “I fear I need sugar for the shock.” 

Both her parents again erupted into a session of abandon laughter, as if she had just told her own dad joke. As the two of them brought themselves under control and with Aoife ignoring them, struggling to free the frozen ice cream from its tub, they quickly shared a subtle smile of victory. Without a doubt that would be the last time their lovely daughter would even consider looking at the Daddy-O app again – on any phone, theirs or anyone else’s for that matter. Mission: My teenager hates my Daddy-o App. Success, mission complete!