Who cares about Dads?

Can you hear it? We’re finally starting to talk about fathers and parenting differently. Having just watched the Super Bowl, how many ads featured parents and their relationships with their kids? Dads are staying home to take care of their kids. Fathers want to be a bigger part of their children’s lives. I’ve been waiting to hear this exchange of ideas for over 20 years. During that time, while raising my own kids, I have concentrated on my own path to becoming a caring, involved father. Now the conversation is starting to happen across the country.

Parenting has gotten more complicated, with a reliance on technology, with more families relying on two incomes, and a future with a lot of question marks coming up fast and furious. Parents are working hard to juggle daycare and babysitters, just to get through the day. At the same time, I meet mothers and fathers every week who want to be more present and do their part to raise the kick-ass kids that the world needs. (If you are interested in learning what I mean about raising kick-ass kids, stay tuned for my upcoming book.)

I can’t tell you how excited I am to attend a summit later this month for dads who are blogging their experiences as parents. This is the third year for this national conference and it has grown by leaps and bounds. You can sense how big this conversation is getting by looking at the brands lining up to sponsor the event: KIA, Best Buy, Esquire magazine, Ryobi power tools, LEGO, Lee jeans, and Dove Men+Care. In fact, I just watched a tear-jerking Super Bowl commercial featuring kick-ass fathers. “Men everywhere are defining what it means to be strong” is the theme of their new campaign #RealStrength.

You can be a part of the conversation. Do you have any stories about parenting in the 21st century, of moms or dads doing things differently? Share them with me and I will add them to the discussion.