Proud of her Dad?

Jeannette Wall's life has been a hard one, and I feel her struggles are a lot because of her dad. He is constantly losing jobs, getting in fights, and drinking. For some reason though Jeannette has a respect for her dad. She stands up for him countless times.
"'Dad has to start carrying his own weight,' Lori said as she stared into the empty refridgerator.
'He does!' I said. 'He brings in money from odd jobs.'
'He spends more than he earns on booze,' Brian said" (pg.78).
If I were in Jeannette's situation, I would take the side of her siblings Brian and Lori. I would be dissappointed in my father and be ashamed more than proud of him. I honestly don't understand what she sees in him.
"'Don't go and try and pretend you're better than me. 'Cause I know your daddy ain't nothing but a drunk like mine.'... I started to runout of the house, but then I stoped and turned around.
'My daddy is nothing like your daddy!' I shouted. 'When my daddy passes out, he never pisses himself!'"(pg.83).
Again, Jeannette defends her father. I don't understand her reasoning, but they must have some sort of personal relationship. They must have a special relationship that can't be understood by the reader.
"'I swear, honey, there are times when I think you're the only one around who still has faith in me,' he said. 'I don't know what I'd do if you ever lost it.'
I told him that I would never lose faith in him. And I promised myself I never would"(pg.79).
I am curious to see if Jeannette's relationship with her dad will change with time.