Last week, I took part in the ‘Be Bold For Change’ initiative as part of International Women’s Day. Truth be told, I always feel somewhat ambivalent about International Women’s Day. After all, there isn’t an International Men’s Day and I suspect there would be general outrage if men suggested there was. But then again, if we look at what it means to be woman from a global perspective, then it is clear that as far as women’s rights go, there is still a job to be done.

But actually, in writing this it occurred to me that I don’t even have to look that far afield to spot that somehow there is still an imbalance, even in my own household.

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So today it is the 22nd December. Three days until Christmas or so I thought until my step-daughter sent me a message saying: “So excited! Can’t wait to see you on Friday!” Friday? Why Friday? I pose this question to my husband (who had been responsible for co-ordinating said visit with our eldest and her family plus my mother-in-law) says: “Because it’s Christmas Eve.” No, it’s not, I reply.

After him arguing that Friday IS Christmas Eve  (DESPITE me waving the phone calendar in his face or rather aiming it to smack him very hard at the centre of his forehead), I take a deep breath and review the implications of Christmas arriving early.

[Read more…] about To the husband who forgot it was Christmas…

This morning I woke up to the news that Donald J. Trump had been elected the 45th US president and like so many people the news left me reeling. I am not a particularly political person and certainly when it comes to political elections of other nations, I don’t especially feel the need to comment or get involved. But Trump is different. His opinions, often designed to be provocative (sometimes intentional and even more worrying, often unintentional) clearly reflect a racist misogynist driven by greed, money and self-interest.

[Read more…] about The World Is In Our Hands

I guess I’ve always been a bit of a scrooge. I’m happy to be involved but when it comes to organising or taking part myself, I have always tended to take a step backwards. However, since Teddy was born, the magic of Christmas, that I felt as a child, has returned and now I’m in full swing in getting things ready for Teddy to have a wonderful season.

This is new territory for me, though, so it is a bit of a learning curve. I’m making (and learning from) mistakes and have managed to compile 5 Christmas Survival Tips for Dads.

1. Start buying gifts early. If there’s any way your bank account is going to manage with the added stress of outgoings, it’s by spreading the cost. In my mind, you should start in the January sales, but this might be taking things a bit too far!
2. Likewise, make arrangements with relatives early too. That way they have more time to ‘get over’ the disappointment that you have decided to have a quiet Christmas with immediate family! i.e., not the in-laws…
3. Wrap as you go! There is nothing worse than wrapping presents. It’s hard, especially if you cack-handed like me. As a child, my mum’s presents were all wrapped in tin foil. No sellotape needed! Savvy!
4. Make sure that you have got the whisky for … *ahem … Santa. Obviously, Christmas is very busy, stressful, tiring and full on and ‘he’ will need a glass of malt at several points during the holiday.
5. Put others before yourself and remember what’s important. Cliche I know, but still so relevant. It’s so easy, especially with a young family, to get swept up in everything and forget that the best thing to get from Christmas is time and memories with loved ones. So there you have it, five survival tips for any dad to get through Christmas.

Al & Teddy
Founder and Editor of www.thedadnetwork.co.uk