For 7 years during my young children’s lives, my husband was the at-home, primary parent. He was definitely a father among mothers, going off to homeschool activities, play dates, and coffee afternoons with the girls. He didn’t really seek the company of other at-home dads. I saw the conversation a couple of times.
“Oh, you stay home with your kids, too?”
“Yeah.”
“Cool.”
(Long, awkward silence.)
“Well, that’s really cool.”
He’s not much of a sharing kind of guy, but I wish he had more of that daddy support and company. He did well without it, because he really does play well as one of the girls, but it would have been another way for him to get the support that any at-home parent needs. Because there are fewer at-home fathers than at-home mothers, virtual networks are even more important.
My Kind of Dad Bloggers
The importance of virtual support networks is just one of the reasons daddy bloggers are so great.
When we held our Blog to Inspire contest , we had exactly one father enter. You remember Stu Chase of Stuland? He’s the one who doesn’t talk about pee enough—and remedied that with a little cloth diaper talk.
I admit that I don’t read too many daddy bloggers, and I’ve been really excited to see that in this the (self-declared!) Year of the Daddy Blogger there are some great fathers out their writing about parenting, fathering, diapering, babywearing, and creating a natural space for their children to grow up in.
Last year The Globe and Mail reported that during the economic downturn, some men who found themselves the at-home parent, often temporarily, also turned to blogging. That was 2009, of course, not 2010, the Year of the Daddy Blogger.
Just as in the world of mommy bloggers, there are some daddy bloggers who seem to be in it for the ads and schwag. I ease away from those and look for the green, attachment fathers. For some it’s more about the DAD, and for others it’s more about the NATURAL or GREEN or ATTACHMENT or even THE CHILDREN.
One blog I’ve read occasionally is Attachment Parenting Blog by Dave, a divorced, single dad. Dave’s blog is a good source of attachment parenting basics and real-life experiences.
I love that Derek of Natural Papa has a series of interviews with homebirth dads. Derek, a tree-hugging dirt-worshiper, is totally my kind of guy.
Top Daddy Bloggers
Who do the daddy bloggers read? A Dad’s Life listed his Top 10 Favorite Daddy Blogs. Shawn of Backpacking Dad likes blogs that are focused on a topic. He calls them Deliberate Dad Blogs. Stay at Home Dad in Lansing reviews Dad Blogs, which is a helpful way to jump in. A Blogger and a Father writes about blogging fathers.
May I say that Keith of Almighty Dad went about compiling his list of Top Dad Blogs of 2010 in a completely guy kind of way? (“Why are boys so obsessed with numbers?” Gregory’s Girl) This homeschooling dad gathered up search, rank, and traffic data for 100+ dad blogs. He explains his methodology in detail. Love it. Seriously. (Because I’m obsessed with numbers, too.)
For the less personal touch, AllTop compiles stories from top sites, so their list of dad blogs is based on popularity also.
The Dad Blog Convocation
When I read about dad bloggers coming together in like-minded groups, I can hear their connections in their words. It’s moving.
Dad Revolution was founded March 2010 with 14 dad bloggers. SAHD in Lansing’s Fatherhood Manifesto captures the heart of their group.
I’ve been impressed by this online brotherhood of dads who have supported each other no matter our differences in geography, ages, the number of children we have or whether we are WAHD, SAHD, single dads, adoptive dads, etc… What stands out so much in the dad blogger community is the comraderie and solidarity we show simply as dads united by one common bond: We love being fathers, and want to share this love with the world.
I’m really pleased to be part of the Dad Revolution, and excited to see what comes of this project.
DadCentric has been around since 2005. These eight dad bloggers are:
a junta of smart, edgy, and talented writer-dads, at the forefront of a revolution whose purpose is to overthrow the outdated notions of Fatherhood. Here you’ll find stories, essays, reviews, and interviews – written by and for modern fathers.
And, it’s time for the dad bloggers to gather. At the Modern Media Man Summit (M3 Summit) this fall, male bloggers, especially dad bloggers, will have the opportunity to network and listen to marketing pitches much like the female bloggers have been doing for years now. How exciting for them. Just based on my experience with BlogHer, I hope that for them the networking becomes more important than the schwag.
For the at-home dads, blogging or not, I wish you the best, and I look forward to seeing how the Dad-centered revolution in parenting develops.
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Hey, this is awesome! Thanks for the mentions and support of dad blogs!