Joy should be an everyday habit and should continue to be evident through the entire course of our fathering lives.

Joy should be an everyday habit and should continue to be evident through the entire course of our fathering lives.
The father who’s truly seeking the best for his kids puts his knowledge and his aspirations into action. Simply stated, he connects.
Dr. Michelle Watson started this silly tradition with her dad, and you can do something similar with your children to increase laughter and strengthen your bond.
Being a good dad usually means sacrificing some activities. But in reality, it isn’t a sacrifice because our kids are more important.
We’re thinking about them–what’s happening in their world. We’re stepping out of our own issues and concerns and being all about theirs.
By Peter Lewis: Hope for, wait for, eagerly anticipate, even relish the joyful intrusion of your children into your life.
Bedtime can be one of the best, most pure moments of fathering, or it can be a tense, emotional struggle. Whenever possible, dads, be there.
We all make mistakes. There are ways we need to improve. But we’re still heroes in our kids’ eyes.
As is often the case, the most profound truths are pretty simple. Reading essays from kids about their dads, we noticed a common theme …
How to Be a Better Dad by David Hirsch: Kids want our time and attention and involvement, and we need to be intentional in these 4 areas.
Three excerpts from kids’ essays highlight fathering commitment and the value of little things we do as dads.
How to Be a Better Dad by Matt Haviland: I push myself to be a better dad by taking it one day at a time and learning as I go.
by Michelle Watson Canfield, PhD, LPC Father’s Day is an occasion to celebrate, no doubt about it. It might even be a day for dads to recommit themselves to loving and investing in their children in meaningful ways. That’s what all of us are about at fathers.com. But...
by Jay Payleitner Traditionally, Mother’s Day is the busiest day of the year for phone calls. So where does that leave dads on Father’s Day? Well, maybe fewer calls are made because talking with the old man is more frustrating than talking with mom. Too often...
Each of your children is unique and special. You had your first baby and had the incredible privilege of relating to and learning about that one for a few years. Then a second one came along, and that child was totally different in hundreds of ways. Maybe you had some...
Dad: are you ever confused or frustrated as you try to figure out what makes your kids tick? One of the key fundamentals of fathering is Awareness of our children—simply getting to know them better. As dads, we should make it our mission to gain insight into who they...
Dad: you have some remarkable women in your life—your mother and your kids’ mom. And you can play a big role in making Mother's Day truly memorable for them. Ideally, you would already have some plans in place by now. Maybe you have thought through what she...
by Michelle Watson Canfield, PhD, LPC Dads: In the past few weeks I’ve had a 47-second video go viral, with nearly 2.6 million views and counting on Instagram! (And honestly, I suspect a good number of the views, likes and shares are coming from daughters and wives...
For many years, our staff had opportunities to read children's essays about their dads, and then interview some of the dads related to our Father of the Year Essay Contests. The contests gave kids opportunities to write about their dads, and we were always amazed at...
Darren is a frustrated father of a two-year-old. You might be thinking, Yeah, so? That’s normal. In many ways, it is normal, and it’s easy to understand why parents came up with the phrase, “terrible twos.” Many young children go through that phase where they need to...
When was the last time you were surprised by your own impatience or insensitivity? Maybe you were in a store or a restaurant and the people on duty were not very attentive to your needs. The situation dragged on long enough to make you pretty frustrated—you deserved...
by Ken Canfield, Ph.D. Once a father, always a father. That simple truth reveals that fathering is a process that lasts from the birth or adoption of your first child until the day you die. And really, we could say it begins when you start preparing for fatherhood....
by Jay Payleitner There are a ton of things you take for granted that would be empowering to a ten-year-old son or daughter. That includes stuff you learned so long ago that you don’t even know you know. Examples? How to reset the circuit breakers. How to shut off...
Has springtime arrived for you yet, dad? During the past few weeks, we turned our clocks back for Daylight Savings (at least most of us did), we’re enjoying tournament basketball and all its madness, and this week came the first day of spring. Maybe that isn’t a big...