Another season of our popular The Modern Dads Podcast concludes with a very special musical episode. Five of our City Dads from around the country join us to discuss the songs that have inspired and informed their parenting.City Dads Group columnist Whit Honea discusses the cover of a classic Rodgers and Hammerstein tune, done by the late Ray Charles, that he uses to get his kids going in the morning.NYC Dad James Lopez, who blogs at Cool4Dads / #FatherhoodIsLit, shares some of the parenting lessons he uses from a song he loved in his childhood, the Notorious B.I.G. tune … [Read more...]
Modern Dad Issues Focus of NYC Summit, Annual ‘New Dad’ Report
The modern dad took center stage last week in anticipation of Father’s Day 2017 with a one-day summit in New York City on the role of fathers around the world and with the release of the latest annual “new dad report” from Boston College Center for Work & Family researchers.The first-ever Dads + SocialGood conference on June 13 brought to Manhattan leading experts, public figures, activists and parents to discuss men, their families and how to support their livelihood. Father and family health as well as the ongoing battle to improve parental leave policies in the United … [Read more...]
Life Lessons Taught to Teens at This Dad’s Driving School
“You have to trust the other drivers,” my father said gently.With those words, my fingers loosened on the wheel, my shoulders relaxed, and my eyes refocused on the right side of the road.I was 16 and about to take a driver’s education class, but my father and I thought it might help to practice beforehand. (My mother wanted no part of it.) For many teens, it would have been time to cue the father-son tension. But my father had always been laid-back and hands-off, so I did not dread driving with him.Even though this was his sixth time teaching driving to a nervous teenager (I am the … [Read more...]
Dad’s First Father’s Days Full of Giggles, Smiles, Diapers
It’s common for parents to say so but, honestly, it doesn’t seem like just yesterday. It’s far more like another lifetime ago.I now have girls zooming around the neighborhood on electric scooters, working diligently with wires and circuit boards as they deconstruct old stereos, and wearing whatever comes just before training bras. The days of diapers, changing pads and mushy peas are a distant, sepia-toned memory buried somewhere on a hard drive.My early days of being a dad and those special first Father’s Days I experienced — a time when pastel-tinted hand prints, slobbery kisses and … [Read more...]
Father Figures Thanked in #ThereToCare Dove Men+Care Campaign
Disclosure: We are proud to partner with Dove Men+Care for its #ThereToCare campaign."Who was #ThereToCare for you?"That's the tagline to this year's annual Father’s Day campaign by Dove Men+Care grooming products, a frequent partner of ours at City Dads Group. The question aims to put the focus not just on fathers but on men who served as father figures to others."Dove Men+Care also wants to acknowledge the other men who have stepped in to care for the next generation. From grandfathers to uncles, to teachers and coaches, there are many men to thank for their roles in shaping us," … [Read more...]
Father’s Day is not Graduation. Also, Vice Versa
The annual meeting had always been the same: stale donuts, terrible coffee, and someone constantly talking about this graph or that. Once, according to company lore, someone accidentally brought bagels, and while everyone was at least one degree away from any concrete confirmation, they all accepted it as gospel, because how wild is that? Bagels, man.It was June, the month of graduations that didn’t happen in May, and everyone was, obviously, giddy. The meeting was the official launch of the latest “Grads and” campaign, held by those that ran it, and included all the hoopla one would … [Read more...]
What It Means to be a Modern Dad on Father’s Day 2017
This Father's Day, forget the hackneyed concepts about golfing and grilling. Some moms and dads we dig told us what being a 21st-century father means. Enjoy.Being a modern dad means always finding time to be goofy with your children and laugh until your stomach hurts. -- Victor Aragon, Chicago Dads Group, FanDadsBeing a modern dad is sharing all the parenting responsibilities equally with your child’s other modern dad. It's also having the confidence to take on tasks traditionally relegated to moms, and the humility to ask for help. -- Brent Almond, Designer DaddyBeing a … [Read more...]
Becoming Dad is a Transformation of Life, Self-Knowledge
Because I’m a dad, I no longer hold others’ babies as far from my body as my arms can possibly reach like I’m offering the gods a living sacrifice.Because I'm a dad, I’m ready for Big Brother and the ubiquitous surveillance that will one day come to our society because I’ve been meticulously watched, noted, and imitated for the past 10 years.Because I’m a dad, I know what Pixar is working on at all times.Because I’m a dad, I’ve expanded my vocabulary to include new, obscure references to expletives or abbreviations for same (most of the time).Because I’m a dad, I know that … [Read more...]
Portland Rocks with City Dads Playing ‘Kindie’ Children’s Music
Portland Dads Group member Aaron Canwell and his then 6-month-old son, Micah, were wandering around their Oregon hometown looking for family-friendly things to do when they stumbled on a group of musicians playing children's songs with a rock 'n' roll beat.Quickly, two new "kindie" music fans were born."This performance engaged children young and old to sing and dance," Canwell said. "I got hooked. I decided I wanted to take my love of music and movement to share with children just like these people did."And soon was born a new band.Micah and Me, composed of Canwell and three … [Read more...]
‘Man vs. Child’ Laughs at Weirdness of Being an At-Home Dad
Man vs. Child: One Dad’s Guide to the Weirdness of Parenting is a nuts-and-bolts reference guide about fatherhood penned in a sarcastic and cynical tone by Doug Moe, a longtime performer, instructor and writer for the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre improv and sketch comedy troupe.Moe, a member of NYC Dads Group, packages advice and empathy mainly for stay-at-home dads (SAHD) about their common dilemmas and doubts about domestic life. What makes the 190-page book unique is Moe’s honest, big-hearted and sentimental take.Although his snark comes across inherently dumb, Moe still … [Read more...]