Yesterday I heard an
interview on NPR about working dads. They interviewed a working father whose blogging career took off when he posted a photo of himself on social media wearing his baby daughter in a baby carrier while doing his older daughter's hair. Apparently this picture evoked a wide range of reaction, from incredibly positive to incredibly negative. My response was surprise that this kind of picture would even cause such a reaction. What's unusual about a dad wearing his baby in a baby carrier? What's remarkable about a dad doing his daughter's hair? I think the answer is that even two generations ago, this probably was extremely rare and our society as a whole is still getting used to the idea of dads who are intimately involved in their children's lives.
I won't go into a diatribe of how parenting has changed in the past few decades and all the societal changes that surround it. But next week I'm going to be driving an hour away from home everyday to attend class. I'll leave shortly after the boys wake up and not be back until dinner time. I realize this is a regular day for most working parents, but it's incredibly strange for me. Fortunately this week coincides with the first week of Hubby T's summer vacation so he'll be home with the boys all day. By himself. He's going to have longer days with them than even I normally have. For someone who's not used to entertaining a baby and toddler all day every day, this is going to be a bit of a culture shock. I told him the other night that I think next week is going to be really hard for him. His response? "I think it's going to be awesome."
So Happy Father's Day to you Hubby T. Thank you for embracing your role of father, for so willingly taking on my roles on top of yours, for looking forward to six straight days of diaper changing, lego playing, cooking, cleaning, entertaining, the list goes on and on. You grew up with the saying, "When mom's away the boys will play." Have fun my boys...but hopefully not too much fun without me;)
