It seems like a simple enough question, but for many dads, these two little words can be really nerve racking. I imagine that answering this question will only get harder and harder as my kids get older. I am still a relatively new father, in that my oldest is only eight years old. However, my practical experience is quickly adding up. The way I see it, I have an 8 year old, 6 year old, 4 year old, and 2 year old twins. That’s like 22 years of fatherhood experience right there! On the other hand, I’m sure that there are dads here who have children older than I am.
I’m not going to use this blog as a soap box to try to tell every one how wonderful a father I am, that I never make any parenting mistakes, and that I’ve always got my act together. My wife will be the first one to dispel any one of those ideas. I’m simply going to let you know about interesting, funny, or tough questions that my children ask me as well as the answer that I gave to them. (I’ll also include, free of charge how well the answer satisfied the child asking the question!)
I would also love it if any dads out there in the families.com world would like to share questions that they have been asked by their children. You can PM them to me and I’ll publish it on my blog here if you would like. It can be anything from a humorous way you answered a silly question, to being a sounding board about how to handle a toughie, to getting a technical answer for something you have absolutely no idea about. (Why is the sky blue, anyway?)
O.K. I’ve set the framework up for how this is going to operate. I’ve got some questions from my own children that I’m going to blog about, but I also look forward to hearing from other dads about questions that they have been asked. Before you read ANYTHING further, there is one thing I’d like for you to keep in mind. All children are different. There are differences in age, gender, personality type, and the relationship you and your child share. Many of the answers to questions you read here will be vastly different from how you would need to answer the same question from your child. For example, think of how you would address a loved one’s death to your college age son as compared to your three year old daughter. The answers you give will have to fit into an appropriate paradigm for your specific child.
Remember, you don’t always have to know the answer to, “Why daddy?” If you don’t know the answer, then it can be a lot of fun learning about it with your child.
Related Articles:
You Think You Have Something Covered. . .