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Preparing for Fatherhood

The Mr. Mom Myth

Exploring the Modern Day Dad

By Greg Downs

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Years ago, actor Michael Keaton immortalized an image of inept fathers -- haphazardly and unsuccessfully scrambling to simultaneously change diapers and cook dinner -- and his performance gave dads a name that has stuck: Mr. Mom.

To many modern-day fathers, who are capable of and interested in taking care of their children, the sobriquet Mr. Mom demonstrates how little society's attitudes about fathers have changed.


	"There's really nothing a mother can do that a father can't do except breastfeeding."

"Mr. Mom, it really bugs me," says Joe Kelly, who directs Dads-and-Daughters, a non-profit program that lobbies against negative images of young girls in the mass media. "I'm not acting as their surrogate mom; I'm their father. It's my job as a parent, too."

Dr. Robert Frank, author of The Involved Father: Getting Dads to Participate More in the Daily Lives of Their Children, says perceptions that men aren't capable of nurturing are flat-out wrong. "There's really nothing a mother can do that a father can't do except breastfeeding," says Frank, who has two children, Kevin and A. J. "And if the mother breastfeeds, the father can burp."

Fathers like Kelly and Frank belie the conventional wisdom about men's limitations, even though many of them, like Kelly, learned how to nurture on the fly. While he and his wife had talked generally about sharing responsibilities, he says he was "totally unprepared to be a parent." His feelings of inadequacy increased when he learned during the delivery that they were going to have twin daughters.

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WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT...

The Mr. Mom Myth

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The Real Mr. Mom says

September 29, 2009

I don't understand why everyone thinks that the title "Mr. Mom" is so negative. In fact, it's the exact opposite! If all those PMSing men would sit back and think before they spoke, then they would see the truth: When a woman asks you "what do you do?" and you respond with "I'm Mr. Mom!", you might giggle a bit at first, but then you actually feel better saying it, and the response from the woman is great too! They might giggle with you a bit, BUT, they actualy present you with even more respect, even more faith that YOU are truly a good father! Men are the cause of the old saying, "Men work, and women raise the kids", not women. And they wonder why people treat them the way they do? Why do you think things like "dad's always missing baseball games" and "dad's sneeking out to the bar to hang wtih the guy's" pop's up all the time? Its not because of stupid movies or TV shows, its because of the way MEN wanted to portray themselves! They wanted to be the guys that worked their butts off all day, came home to a cooked meal and then got to sit and watch TV the rest of the night or go golfing or fishing with their buds, or hang out at the bar. THEY are the cause, so stop blaming everyone else for your own problems! Grow up!

Be proud to be called "Mr. Mom"! Most people dont' even remember the movie, and most people don't even care about the movie! And women today truly don't think that fathers are like the character in the movie at all! In fact the majority of mothers know for a fact that men are extremely good at parenting and really good at being that fatherly figure! That's why they treat you more as an "equal in the household" when YOU have went through what they have! Its the same reason guys won't ask for help from a woman: It makes them look weak, and helpless, and that's just not right...pffft, again, GROW UP! Women actualy LIKE IT when you ask for help! They respect you more, they like you more, and they know you are being real rather than fake! And yes, they know when you are being fake.

So take pride in being called "Mr. Mom!" Its a great thing!

I am a father, aka a "Mr. Mom" of 2 beautiful children, 5 and 1. And I'm not afraid of the truth, nor do I care what other people think of me! THAT is called being a REAL MAN!

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