With Father’s Day right around the corner, we thought we’d hit up more than a dozen of our favorite dad bloggers for their own best parenting advice. We love each of these cool dads for using their powerful voices online to support other parents, so it’s only fitting that they’d have wonderful words of advice this week in particular in honor of Father’s Day.
We hope these words encourage you, make you think, and make you smile as much as they did us.
Embrace the differences between your children and let them each bring out your different personalities. Variety is the spice of life. And it makes parenting a lot more fun! – Jim Higley, Bobblehead Dad
Fatherhood is as much about helping your kids find themselves as it is learning who you are through them. You don’t have to be caricature of yourself or a stereotype. Define the role for yourself, and invest everything you have into it. – Charlie Capen, How to Be a Dad
Learn to forgive yourself for making mistakes. NO ONE is a perfect parent. Sometimes the only way we learn to be better parents are through the mistakes we make along the way. Let your kids see you fail so they learn that it’s okay for them to do it too. – Chris Bernholdt, DadNCharge
Don’t show your child Star Wars until they’re ready… and you’re ready to answer nonstop questions throughout the entire film. -Brent Almond, Designer Daddy
Be as active in your kids’ lives as humanly possible. Whether it’s doing your share of feedings when they’re an infant, doing their insane hair, or dressing up like a princess. Do it all. Kids are awesome. And so, so, so, SO exhausting! -Nick Browne, Poppin’ Bottles Podcast
Get involved. It’s like anything else in life — spectators don’t get nearly the same experience as participants. The rewards for being a deeply involved dad are far, far greater than being a bystander. – Rob Candelino, VP of Marketing, Unilever
Parenting isn’t all memories and milestones. It’s the small moments between that define us. – Whit Honea, Dads4Change
No matter how busy you think you are, always make the time to get down on the floor to play with your kids. The day comes quickly where they don’t ask anymore, so enjoy every minute of it while you can. – Chris Read, Life of Dad
Make date night a non-negotiable each week. We need to work just as hard at focusing on our significant other as we do on parenting. A small investment to go out for a quiet dinner, meet friends for drinks, catch a movie, or take a stroll around the neighborhood are easy ways to take care of that special bond with your partner. – Lance Somerfeld, City Dads Group
If you say you’re going to do something, do it. Kids are smart and they’re also straightforward. They won’t remember the reason or the excuse — they will just remember if you kept your word, and they will understand what dependability is all about. – David Wescott, It’s Not a Lecture
Fatherhood is learning to say you’re sorry. – Caleb Gardner, writer + Digital Director of @OFA
Empower your kids to be who they want to become. Keep them safe, but never stifle their spirit! – C.C. Chapman, writer, photographer, explorer
Last weekend, I made a big production of giving my 1 1/2-year-old daughter ice cream for the first time. We went to the finest ice cream shop in Brooklyn and I got her a dish of locally sourced, artisanally crafted vanilla. She refused to even touch it. This weekend, I got her a $1.50 chocolate/vanilla cone from a Mr. Softee truck, which she inhaled in about 30 seconds, followed by the longest sentence she’s ever said: “Thank you very much, I appreciate it.” There’s a parenting metaphor in there somewhere. – Micah Abrams, Fatherly
A lot of parents are fond of saying ‘enjoy every moment!’ but I’d encourage you to allow your kids to enjoy every moment of their childhood. Yes, having self-sufficient older kids who can pour their own cereal in the morning is an outstanding development and having tweens you can take out to late-night rock concerts is pretty rad but all that will come in due time. For now, give your kids the gift of a long, beautiful childhood by not rushing them into adulthood. – Jeff Bogle, OWTK
Find the most mind-alertingly strong coffee you can. And if you don’t drink coffee, start. – Andy Herald, How to Be a Dad
Don’t check to see if it’s poop or chocolate. Because it’s poop. It’s definitely poop. – Christopher Persley, The Brown Gothamite
