Hey Guys,
I thought I would set aside my corn cob pipe and turn off The People's Court for a while to chime in on AtHomeDad.
I agree with some of the sentiment being bandied about, certainly this site is going to attract newer fathers, or those who just found the site, I think that is a given. I admit as an Old Timer or Vet here I check in less and post less but my situation – as all of ours does as our kids develop – had started to change. Many of us have kids heading back to school or in my case starting school. I’m happy but also a bit maudlin that my little girl is off to school. I have been covetous of these our last few “baby days.”
However I would hate to see this site change in one particular way, our sense of community. There has been some talk about “no rants no diatribes” but I have to disagree. More than once on a day where I was not sure if I was going to make it through the day, I posted about my insecurities and low moral. And within a few hours men like JonMcP and JPhillip were bolstering my spirits. I was hesitant to post personal stuff at first but, in the end, I was not sure who else would understand. In one way or another we have all been there for each other. Even if just surfing the site you can see there are other dads out there with the same thoughts and similar situations. Being a New Yorker I thought I would be knee deep in AHDs but I couldn’t find a one. While not the same I did find y’all here on this site and at times it has been a life saver.
I enjoy this site because we are all supportive and there aren’t any “haters” to spoil things like on so many sites. I love talking pop culture and current events to some degree but I hope we can keep this site as open and welcoming to the new comer as it was to me and to the other Old Timers. I don’t think we need worry to much about what others think about us, we all know, the difference here is that it’s public. Heaven knows how many reporters and researchers had us do their jobs for them, but, this is where Google takes you when you enter “at home dads.”
We are a small group, a vanguard, a forlorn hope, we are The Pathfinders the first on the ground on D-Day and we know it. Our lives and choice to be and stay at home fathers, may not make an impact on history but it sure has a huge impact in the lives of our kids. I feel that we really show the world that you can be what you want in life, even if it is to stay home with the kids.
That’s it from Brooklyn…those darn kids are on my lawn again, gotta go.
~Jonathan
Joined: 2007-11-12
Dad Points: 852