Fathers Day

This is just a short post I wanted to write as Father's Day is coming up here in Australia (September 2nd) and I get to re-stock my supplies of socks, underpants and DVD's.

In one of my more serious (and second most popular!) posts titled, "Dads have it Easy(er)", I wrote about the importance of fathers or father figures in the lives of children.

Now, men want practical tips - not airy fairy emotional stuff. You don't have to give us all the background, just tell us what to do.

So I've taken one practical piece of advice that I learned and applied it at my childrens' school - having some of the kids read to me in the morning before class.

It's mostly gone well - and has been a lot of fun.  My "regulars" have come to enjoy reading to me - you can tell. One boy actually told me he wanted to read to me every day. That was nice. I think it's because, being a Dad, I'm naturally much cooler than the Mum's. I can't help it - that's just the way it is.  It's like the sun always rising in the East and setting in the West. Dads, by definition, are cooler.


At first only the boys read to me. The adults call the kids over so I chose boys - partly because the particular course I attended at the Fathering Project focussed more on positive male role models for boys - but also because I don't have girls and wasn't sure I'd understand them. But of course, no man really understands females, so after a few weeks I took the plunge and asked one of the girls in class if she'd like to read to me.

At first she seemed a bit freaked out, but agreed nonetheless - probably out of fear. However, the next time I was at school I asked her if she'd like to read, and she jumped out of her seat with excitement. When she got to me though, it was me who wasn't as thrilled. The first thing she said as she sidled right up to me was, "Mum's taking me to the Doctors later today. I felt like vomiting this morning."

I leaned back as far as I could and tried to avoid the coughing fit that she began having. Anyway, it's not all upside ...

But, the main reason for this post was that the good people at the Fathering Project sent out an email the other day with the following tips which I wanted to share. To tell you the truth, the tips feel like they're more appropriate for Mother's Day, but hey, they don't say "Happy Wife, Happy Life" for no reason. 

So Dad's, try out some of these practical tips. They don't take much effort, and the benefits can be significant:

Take your child on a special outing this week

Spend 30 minutes being active outside together

Have a family game night this week

Give Mum some alone time this week

Do one extra household task this week to help Mum

Say something positive to or about Mum in front of the children

And have a good Father's day.

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