Clorox, makers of bleach and many other consumer products, just came out with a clever article called “6 Mistakes New Dads Make.” The article gleefully tells us that “Like dogs or other house pets, new Dads are filled with good intentions but lacking the judgment and fine motor skills to execute well.” And that’s just...Continue reading
Tag: fatherhood
To Fathers and Fathers To Be
“A father is a guy who has snapshots in his wallet where his money used to be.” Now there’s the essence of fatherhood. I have a similar albeit less poignant story about what it means to be a father. The Immortal Cinderella When my daughter was little, she had a plastic Cinderella statue that she...Continue reading
Paternity Leave: More than a policy
Imagine this: a father pushing his child in a stroller, fulfilling his duties as a father, seen as attractive and potentially “the new kind of manly.” Author Katrin Bennhold describes this new definition of masculinity in her article, “In Sweden, Men Can Have It All,” as a “most striking example of social engineering.” Ms. Bennhold...Continue reading
Lessons To Teach Your Son
When asking myself the lessons a father must teach their son, I had to break this down into two groups. There are both primary lessons and indirect or secondary lessons that fathers must teach their children. The primary lessons I feel are the most important and the secondary ones are what fathers can teach children...Continue reading
Divorced Fathers: Shared Residential Sustody – An Increasingly Popular Choice
For those divorced fathers who are currently in the process of creating or re-negotiating your parenting plans (“visitation” schedule) for your children, consider the benefits of shared residential custody. By this, I mean having your children live with you 35%-50% of the time. Many states have revised or are in the process of revising their...Continue reading
Kids Versus The New Relationship
One of the greatest challenges for fathers who have switched from “husband” to “single dad” is figuring out the tricky mix of new love interest — or sometimes just new intimate partner — and your children. I’ve experienced the gamut myself as a single dad for almost five years, and I have my own rules...Continue reading
For Girls, Puberty at Age 6? That’s One of the Best Reasons to Be an Involved Dad
More and more girls are starting puberty early. Some as early as six! If you’ve got daughters–and I’ve got three of ’em–there are a few things you really, really need to know. Let’s start with the good news, some of which I’ve written about extensively. Girls who have actively involved dads start puberty later than...Continue reading
The Sperm Project
The signs that your partner is getting ready to nest may be as subtle as an earth quake. Suddenly babies are being put into your arms at every family function with everyone making chirping sounds about what a good father you would make. Books with baby-making tips and parenting advice may have found its way...Continue reading
Case Studies in Flying Above the Father in Literature & Film: Hemingway’s Robert Jordan
What was Hemingway trying to tell us?Continue reading
The Importance of Father-Son Proximity and Initiation into the Masculine Culture
Friday after Thanksgiving was a lazy, windy, cold and gray day in Washington, D.C. I nearly forgot I had scheduled to meet a friend because he had expressed an interest in getting involved in men’s health issues. I got to our meeting place early, grabbed a hot chocolate to warm up, and a Wall Street...Continue reading