In the UK we celebrate Fathers' Day on Sunday and all over the country we make a fuss of our own fathers and our children's fathers - our partners/ hubbie . Cards are bought and made, presents given and usually a special meal is prepared and eaten as a family. Fathers are generally allowed to be the centre of attention just as mothers are on Mothering Sunday. Some people are inclined to complain that fathers do less and should not be entitled to their own special day but I disagree. I think fathers play an exceedingly important role. Here are some of the things my kids do because their father is who he is.
1. They get a different point of view on almost everything from what time they can go to bed to how tidy their room needs to be, how to eat and where to go on holiday. Men and women think differently and by having access to two points of view children are learning how to make choices, consider options and weigh up their own angle on the subject.
2. When they get Dad's attention it is undivided. Mums famously multi-task but men don't. Whatever they are doing they do it 100% so even though they may spend less time physically with their kids they are happy to give them their undivided attention when they do.
3. They don't mind reading Thomas the Tank Engine stories - sorry but I just never managed to make those books sound exciting but men seem to have the knack.
4. Fathers enjoy running about doing sporty stuff, chasing balls, chasing children and generally being physical and energetic in a way that most mums won't. Kids need this and love it and they probably value it much more than knowing their clothes will be washed by mum afterwards.
5. Fathers don't fuss and over-protect. If your child falls over they will just tell them to get up whereas we are more likely to check them all over to make sure they aren't hurt, kiss away the hurt and tell them to be careful.
6. They don't feel a failure when things don't work out right nor do they worry they've done a bad job if their child gets a bad mark at school or hasn't got any friends. They just tell them that everything will work out fine, which it does.
7. They don't worry about every single little thing their child eats or doesn't eat. They don't take it personally if their meal isn't eaten they just tell them to eat up because there isn't anything else. Mum goes off and prepares an alternative because she can't bear her child to be hungry.
8. Dads know how to say 'no' and Mums , do we ?
I've probably generalised enormously but a this is a Blog post and not a piece of advice as such, I justify this on the basis that this is based on my own personal experience of my own lovely Dad, who annoyingly often said 'no' and who when he was around, was (and still is) a great listener and a non-worrier and my hubbie Edward.
You are very welcome to add your own comments!
1. They get a different point of view on almost everything from what time they can go to bed to how tidy their room needs to be, how to eat and where to go on holiday. Men and women think differently and by having access to two points of view children are learning how to make choices, consider options and weigh up their own angle on the subject.
2. When they get Dad's attention it is undivided. Mums famously multi-task but men don't. Whatever they are doing they do it 100% so even though they may spend less time physically with their kids they are happy to give them their undivided attention when they do.
3. They don't mind reading Thomas the Tank Engine stories - sorry but I just never managed to make those books sound exciting but men seem to have the knack.
4. Fathers enjoy running about doing sporty stuff, chasing balls, chasing children and generally being physical and energetic in a way that most mums won't. Kids need this and love it and they probably value it much more than knowing their clothes will be washed by mum afterwards.
5. Fathers don't fuss and over-protect. If your child falls over they will just tell them to get up whereas we are more likely to check them all over to make sure they aren't hurt, kiss away the hurt and tell them to be careful.
6. They don't feel a failure when things don't work out right nor do they worry they've done a bad job if their child gets a bad mark at school or hasn't got any friends. They just tell them that everything will work out fine, which it does.
7. They don't worry about every single little thing their child eats or doesn't eat. They don't take it personally if their meal isn't eaten they just tell them to eat up because there isn't anything else. Mum goes off and prepares an alternative because she can't bear her child to be hungry.
8. Dads know how to say 'no' and Mums , do we ?
I've probably generalised enormously but a this is a Blog post and not a piece of advice as such, I justify this on the basis that this is based on my own personal experience of my own lovely Dad, who annoyingly often said 'no' and who when he was around, was (and still is) a great listener and a non-worrier and my hubbie Edward.
You are very welcome to add your own comments!
RSS Feed
