Dad In A Daughter's World

We are the summary of the 5 people closest to us. This is why the friend group is so important. I share how I ask about the friend group and encourage her to pick good influences and separate from the negative ones. 

Our young girls are caught between two worlds. They are too old for Disney music, but not old enough for Katy Perry. Where are they supposed to go? This is a challenge I've been working through and, to be honest, not completely figured out. We can't shelter them from every burden, but we can't force onto them more than they can handle. 

Feedback is so important for our kids because they want to learn everything they can from us (even if they act like they don't). The problem is we can get stuck in a negative rut and only see the bad things they do. We have to be clear and positive with our kids when providing feedback.

Ever since having daughters I have become much more aware of the presentation of women. Now that football season is back up, I have to ask, "what is the point of cheerleaders?" They don't actually do anything at the game. They do force me to address concepts of what beauty is with my kids though, so I guess there's that.

My daughter asked me, "why do we eat the same thing for breakfast every day?" Well, I'm so glad you asked, let me tell you....

Have you ever found yourself adding things to your "honey do" list, or working longer hours then necessary? Have you ever asked yourself why? I did this and realized I was using my work as a distraction so I didn't have to deal with something that made me uncomfortable.

Some dads are good at playing with Barbies, I am not one of them. I have frustrated my kids more than once because I'm not good at imagination games. I think we, as dads, need to be honest with ourselves about our strengths and weaknesses as well as candid with our kids regarding them.

Sometimes we miss things. No one's going to bat 1.000. A childish disagreement on the playground is a great opportunity to help separate the dignity of the person from their ideas, thoughts, or beliefs. If we can teach this one thing, our future will be brighter.

We all know that phase when you hear, "hey, dad! Watch this!" or, "Hey, dad. Look at me!" It is a fun stage where they really think you are the coolest dude ever, but it comes with it's challenges, like the constant demand for your attention. We have to consider a few things during this stage to help maintain the status of coolest dude ever to our little girls.

It is critically important that we read to our kids every day. It is also important for dads to be involved in that. The kids benefit from seeing us read to them as well as from the books we will favor over what they will typically choose. 

If you need some help getting a good bedtime story, please consider my first children's story The Great Wolf. The Amazon link is here