What do Dads Bring to Parenting?

One of the things that our students often discuss at our workshops is their future role within their family.  Some of them express concerns around what they bring to the table as a parent.  They worry that their role is superfluous next to a mother’s role.  Dadday wants you to rest assured: fathers bring unique and valuable perspectives to the parenting domain.

The research to support this is tremendous.  One fathering expert, Dr. Kyle Pruett puts it simply: “fathers do not mother.”  Dr. Pruett goes on to explain that, “fathers have a distinct style of communication and interaction with children.  By eight weeks of age, infants can tell the difference between their mother or father interacting with them.”  This exposure to different perspectives is incredibly beneficial to child development.

Fathers also love differently.  Think back to your own childhood; your father’s love for you was just as valuable and needed as your mother’s love.  Each parent serves to complement the other, providing for their child in unique ways.

The ways that a father impacts his child are numerous.  It is important to remember how special your part is in your child’s life.  If you are looking for a place to discuss your future role, be sure to stop by one of our Dadday workshops.  We pick back up in September.  Hope to see you there!

Being a Supportive Partner

Dadday, as an organization, has a mission to provide new and expecting fathers with a comprehensive instruction kit for the first months.  We also prepare fathers with a long view of parenthood and insight into how their role changes over the years as their child grows.  With that said, we want to ensure our students have a holistic perspective to their understanding around parenting.  Good parenting comes from the bond and partnership between two spouses that support each other.  With this in mind, many of our Dadday workshops explore ways to work successfully in a partnership.

Over the years, Dadday has spent a great deal of time creating and writing literature that speaks to this bond between parenting partners.  As you prepare for your child’s birth, have you talked with your spouse about your plan to share responsibilities?  It might seem tedious to discuss who will get up in the middle of the night months prior to your baby’s arrival.  Planning beforehand however, sets a smoother path for the future; we all know this.  It also helps to show your partner that you too are prepared, and ready to share in what might seem like an overwhelming responsibility.

If you are looking for the space to discuss and toss around ideas on how you can be the most supportive partner, stop by a Dadday workshop.  It isn’t too late to sign up for our July 22 workshop.  Simply visit our website, www.dadday.org for more information.  The conversation next Sunday is sure to be helpful and dynamic, so we hope to see you there!

Getting to Know Your Baby…Before Birth

The primary focus of a Dadday workshop is to familiarize our students with their new role as fathers.  The more comfortable they are with the idea of fatherhood, the better dad they can be.  Of the many topics that we cover, our work together revolves around an essential question: what does it mean to be a dad to your child?  We have dynamic conversations about parenting styles, responsibilities, and preparation, all the while helping our students to discover an individual path for success.  There are tons of ways to become a great parent, and by honing in on the preparation part with our students, we help them achieve it.

One thing we recommend doing before your baby even arrives is spending time with him or her.  You are probably doing this already, simply by spending time with your partner every day.  But we suggest taking this one step further, by actually carving out specific times of the day to really bond with your baby.  It might seem a little awkward at first, to set an alarm for talking to and/or rubbing a belly.  Research shows, however, that the interactions are well worth it.  A baby’s ear, which is, “already functional by the 16^th week of pregnancy, is an incredibly sensual organ.”  This gives you an awesome opportunity to talk with your baby, helping to create a relationship before you have officially met.

Gently touching your baby through the womb is also highly beneficial.  It is more than likely that the baby will respond to you, especially in the last few months of the pregnancy!  As your child grows and develops within the womb, the bond created by interacting physically with one another is both thrilling and exciting.  In spending time with your child and partner, the relationship between all of you stands to benefit.

In the months before your baby arrives, things can be hectic and overwhelming.  One thing does, however, remain constant.  Spending time with your child before birth is a great way to become comfortable with your him or her, as well as build your confidence around your ability to respond to your child’s needs.

Happy Fourth of July!

We want begin this blog by wishing all our readers a very happy Fourth of July.  We took some time back on Father’s Day to reflect on the importance of being a dad, and we think it is only fitting to do the same for this holiday.  Our team was recently tossing around memories that we had with our fathers on Fourth of July, and many of them included grilling in the backyard, tossing a football around, and being hoisted onto our father’s shoulders for a better view of the fireworks.  No matter the memory, the most important sentiment was the time we spent with our fathers and the impact that it had on us, then and now.

As you set out on this Fourth of July, keep in mind the memories that your children will carry on.  Every day is a special day to be a dad, but thoughts of the past are often punctuated by holidays and special occasions.  Take that extra moment to show your son or daughter just how the grill works, sharing the ownership in the final and delicious outcome with them.  Perhaps you spend a little more time talking with your kids about the importance of this holiday, and what it means for them.  And for the little ones, just be sure to capture as many picture perfect moments as you possibly can, to share with them in the future.

Whatever you choose to do today, keep in mind how special your family is, and how important your role is within it.  Be sure to share with us the many memories that you make by tweeting a picture to us, @daddayorg, or posting it on our Facebook wall.  We love to see what great things dads are doing all around the country.