What is he doing there – and how does he do it? Which mom hasn't caught herself watching her husband in his dad role with skeptical amazement ?! Fathers do some things very differently from mothers. And that's just as well!
Adventure? With dad, please!
As soon as you leave dad alone with the child, it gets loud. They romp and laugh together until someone cries, in the truest sense of the word. While we women often find ourselves getting lost in chuckle mode – after all, our baby is so tiny and fragile! – Dads often have less fear of contact. True to the motto: the child won't break down.
Fathers don't forget themselves
Sure: Both parents push their limits for their own child. After all, the little worm's needs suddenly play a bigger role than their own. But give yourself up completely for the best interests of the child? Does not have to be. Fathers remind us that you also have your own dreams and wishes – and that you can pursue them. When dad wants to meet friends for dinner but can't find a babysitter, he just takes the child with him. Provided he's old enough of course. Above all, it shows us that the child grows up healthy and happy if it just walks along instead of always being the focus.
But in dad mode they forget everything else
You have a day off, come home and enter … the absolute chaos. While mothers let off steam in parenting, housework and laundry at the same time, fathers all too often show that they are not multitasking heroes. But to be honest: father and child, lost in the middle of toys, discover how they can concentrate fully on playing, then compensates for the mess again.
Baby talk? Not with dad!
In the case of small creatures with big eyes, women keep catching themselves as their voices slide an octave higher. Baby language flows out of us as if we had never spoken differently – whether we like it or not. Fathers, on the other hand, are seldom caught with nicknames and belittling. The voice also changes less when talking to babies. And there is also something good about that: After all, children fall asleep much better at the same time as the comfortably deep papa organ that is reading aloud …
The papa pragmatism
Open knees? Milk spilled? Bumped toe? Half so wild! Dads often take things as they are and move on. Then there is a short medical treatment, cleaning and pain blown away – then you can continue playing.