There are 30 Days until Father’s Day. Each day until then Life of Dad will feature an incredible father from around the world.
Up first is our interview with Russ Jones, the brilliant mind behind www.thestayathomer.com. Russ has a great wife, and two kids, Noble (6) and Alistair (2.5). In addition to being a great father, husband, and blogger, Russ is quite the cartoonist. You must check out his site for this reason alone. On to Russ’ interview…
I really became a father when… I saw the top part of the head of my first son exiting my wife. It was then that a sudden realization occurred that I had the most supremely mountainous responsibility on my hands from that point on. This thing that had been brewing in my wife was real, and there he was, or at least there was the milky white, disgusting top portion of his head. That’s when I truly became a father. The birth of your children changes you, for the better…for the best. It’s pretty dang profound.
My kid makes me laugh when… my six year old tries to make jokes. It’s in the effort that I am most amused. “Dad, what if an apple flew through the air and it was like Appleman..not Superman!” Listening to him laugh his way through the telling is hilarious, even if the jokes are total bombs. And for my two year old, it’s when he dances. He’s got all kinds of sass when he shakes his butt…it is also hilarious.
Favorite daddy cocktail once the kids crash? Rum and coke, but I don’t wait until they are in bed. I’m a stay at home father…cocktails start at 5pm. 4:00 if the kids are “trying my patience.”
Dream date night with your lady, where would you go? My dream? Dinner and then to see the Avengers in 3D at the Gold Class Cinemas. (you can order Rum and cokes at the gold class cinemas! And the seats are like recliners, so my wife could fall asleep, while I enjoy the movie! Win win!)
What is the hardest thing about fatherhood? Being consistent. It’s one of the most vital things you need to be as a parent, and it’s also the hardest. Because there are so many times when you, for example, just want to give them a lollipop so they’ll shut up….but you can’t, because that would reenforce their crappy behavior. Being consistent with boundaries and expectations is definitely the mighty challenge! Also being there for your children in the face of some pretty horrible behavior is highly difficult. I think a lot of times I project adult behavior expectations on my small kids, and so when they misbehave it take some conscious effort to realize and understand what is really behind the behavior…because it’s NOT that they are just being an asshole, like it appears.
What’s in your man cave? I don’t have a man cave. I barely have a man drawer. Next question…
How many hours of sleep each night? I gave up on that 6 years ago. It hurts my heart to think of what the actual number is. Next question…
What food that your kids eat do you like the most? Macaroni and Cheese. I love it!
How has fatherhood changed in the last 20 years? You really aren’t supposed to spank your kids anymore….unfortunately. I’m kidding! I LOVE my children, I would NEVER*.
Dream family vacation? I want to rent an RV and take it across the U.S. for 3 months with the kids. For me, that would be the ultimate bonding experience with my kids. There’s many places that I haven’t been to that I would love to see, and I think it would be awesome to do with the whole family.
Besides The Stay at Homer blog, you can keep up to date with Russ on Facebook or Twitter. We couldn’t be happier to have Russ here as a big part of Life of Dad, the first social network for fathers.