When a crisis hits you out of nowhere, what do you do next? When Guy faced nearly losing a child, he learned 13 lessons before the crisis was even over. Sometimes in life you have experiences that profoundly and permanently change you. Experiences either solidify your existing beliefs, assumptions and expectations, or they challenge and change what you thought you knew. Some are so small you don’t even notice them. Some ...

One of my most favourite things of all time is when one or both of our boys have a day out with dad. Partly because it means I get a day out with myself that usually consists chocolate, girly movies and/or pampering, but also because I notice a distinct difference in my boys every time they return. As if they’ve grown up a little bit, and for the next few days, ...

Avoid “good cop, bad cop” parenting as much as possible. In fact, ditch it altogether. A system that elevates mums over dads, or dads over mums, doesn’t work. Good cop, bad cop parenting’s long-term costs negate any short-term benefits. The system is a recipe for favouritism, resentment and parental neglect. Potentially even divorce. Good cop, bad cop is a poor metaphor for parenting. It’s even worse as an instruction manual for ...

This Father’s Day will be different again. Border closures and social distancing rules have made it harder to socialise locally. These home-delivered Father’s Day gifts will help us love our dads from afar and make them feel appreciated, even if we can’t be there in person. Supporting local shops and Australian-made products is going to benefit our local economy. If you’re at a loss on what to send your dad via ...

Listen to author Annette Spurr’s interview with Focus on the Family Australia here. ‘While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.’ ~ Angela Schwindt Nothing can truly prepare you for parenthood. The tears and tantrums, toilet training, sleepless nights, the worry that you’re not doing it right, or the indescribable love that changes everything. As soon as I found out ...

Sometimes I find myself wondering what it would be like if he were here now. I’d like to make a place for him at our table for Christmas lunch, like I do for Mum and other family and friends. I’d like to serve him and make up the spare room in our home. I’d like him to see what I’ve become. I was a skinny, pimply, constantly awkward teenager when he ...

Create a visual journal of crafts made with your kids at home in isolation. The corkboard craft display will be a tangible visual reminder of the fun you got up to with your kids. We’ve had our first week and a bit in isolation… Some have been doing home-school. It’s been a crazy juggle for parents as they manage working from home, while ensuring kids are… occupied and learning. It’s not ...

So, my eldest started school last week and I was cool with that. Yes, I did get a little misty-eyed at drop-off time (Tyson, as predicted, was totally fine and ran off into the proverbial distance with nary a look over his shoulder). I thought I’d be anxious about leaving my baby, about him making friends, about liking his teacher… but do you know the thing that freaked me out the ...

Around half of all toddlers are considered fussy eaters, screwing up their nose at salad and pitching butternut pumpkin from their high chairs. Establishing healthy eating patterns in children is important and can have a big impact on their everyday health, growth and cognitive development. So, how do we avoid the daily food fight? Cancer Council Queensland has five tips to get parents started. One, be a good role model: Children ...

Some days, being a mother is just plain hard. Today was one of those days. I promised to take my boys to play mini golf. Secretly, I was looking forward to it more than they were! I’d been wanting to try out this place for months and finally the day had arrived but… My youngest was in a bad mood all morning; he threw a tantrum because there wasn’t enough honey ...

We all get a bit of shock pretty early on in married life. For some, it is day 1: “This isn’t what I expected!” At some point, you will probably find yourself asking yourself the question: Is marriage worth it? Are you married?  How has it been going for you lately?  You wouldn’t be the first person to stop and ask yourself that question. Most of us men enter into marriage ...

Sometimes parents can feel a little helpless when anything they do makes their child’s tantrum worse. Below, Jess Mannion sheds light on how we can respond to kids’ tantrums in her blog post titled, ‘Public Tantrums – How To Remain The Parent’. We have all been there. As our children get older, theoretically the tantrums get easier to deal with — we can explain things more, empathise with how upset they ...

As the cold weather sets in, it’s vital to give your mind and body a boost to improve overall mood and wellbeing. 1. Centre in on your diet. Fill your plate with plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables to give your body adequate nutrition and vitamins to increase energy levels throughout the winter months. A nutritious diet, along with drinking plenty of water, will ensure your immune system stays strong to help ...

Help comes from the most unexpected places in the most unexpected ways. This has been the case since the beginning of Dads4Kids in 2002. My wife and I have been truly humbled by the amazing support Dads4Kids has received over that time. When we started Dads4Kids there was a desperate need to see positive change for men and fathers. Thankfully, we saw significant support from conservative liberal parliamentarians too numerous to ...

Look out for health shocks found in the average lunchbox, with parents preparing to pack the first of about 200 lunches per child over the year from today. Research shows many lunchboxes contain the recommended serves of fruit, but can be alarmingly low on vegetables and high on hidden sugar and salt. Parents may be packing foods that appear healthy, and would be shocked to discover high levels of saturated fat, sugar ...

Mother, according to a well-known online encyclopedia, is: “A female parent of a child. Mothers are women who inhabit or perform the role of bearing some relation to their children, who may or may not be their biological offspring.” A mother, from the point of view of Wikipedia, sounds so perfectly neat and precise in definition. If only there was a textbook that was as neat and precise that could explain ...

Mahatma Gandhi said, “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.” Eric Barker, it would seem, has been inspired by Gandhi’s wisdom in his science-based article called, “How to Raise Happy Kids: 10 Steps Backed by Science.”  Eric Barker is the creator of the blog Barking Up the Wrong Tree, and the book of the same name, which presents science-based answers and expert ...

A mother makes a father, and a father makes a mother. Parenthood happens in unison. So, it goes without saying that Mums are incredibly priceless and vital, just as Dads are. So why don’t we value mothers more than we do? Studies and anecdotal evidence show that mothers generally feel very under-appreciated. As men we must change that. Check out Dads4Kids‘ contribution to that change in the new “Love You Mum” ...

Benjamin Franklin said, “We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.” That is the case between men and women today. We have a choice. We either end the Gender War, or lose our unique identity as men and women in our society. Fatherhood and manhood are under attack, but so are motherhood and womanhood. The video below is a prime example.   You probably know ...

We celebrate Mothers next Sunday, 10 May 2020, but do we really celebrate motherhood all year round? Sadly, the reverse is the case. Mothering is regularly maligned and belittled in mainstream media. Oftentimes, mothers are mocked for their sacrificial devotion to their families. If you think I am exaggerating, read this relatively recent article by Dianne Anders titled: “Aussie wife slammed by Today Show hosts for loving family epic response”. Brooke ...