3 Things Dads Do Better Than Moms

Mothers have a tendency to receive all the credit for the upbringing, health and happiness of their children. Though I have to say, as a stay-at-home-mom of four small children who takes on the responsibility of most of their day to day care and education, I do deserve a LOT of credit. These kids are cray-cray and wild! However, one must give credit where credit is due, and to be honest, while there are many things that dads do better than we do, there are three things dads do better than moms!

Over the last seven years, in my journey through motherhood, I’ve noticed a loss of value in the role dads play. In many tv shows they are made fun of, disrespected and honor seems outdated. Dads are depicted as irresponsible babysitters who don’t know how to change diapers and frequently feed the kids hot pockets. Although, I will say, anytime my kids are left alone with daddy for an extended period of time, I get the usual text asking where the wipes are? Really? They’re in the same spot they’ve been for seven years! 

On Mothers Day my four-year-old did a video for church where she was asked  “Is your mom funny?” to which she responded, “No, but Daddy IS. Every day!” This simple statement got me thinking, what else does he bring to the table that I lack? The beauty of a partnership is that I don’t have to do it all. For me, this has brought so much freedom in accepting and inviting his parenting style. Wish I would have had this divine revelation seven years ago! I feel secure in my role as a mother and have made room for his style of parenting. Though I sometimes cringe at the way he disciplines, plays and dresses our kids, I have come to cherish his contribution to parenthood. 

Here are 3 things I believe dads do better than moms:

Dad’s inspire critical thinking

I promise you, if you ask my husband for the ages of our kids, it will take him a minute to come up with an answer for you. In my own experience I’ve found that dads don’t focus too much on ages and stages of development. Because of that I often overhear conversations between my husband and the kids that I feel are too mature for them, but in reality it’s these conversations that spark questions and thinking that I would have never thought possible because I often stick to the preschool concepts that I know are appropriate.

Dads encourage risk-taking

As a self-proclaimed helicopter mom here, I can often be heard yelling “Be careful! Go slow!” while my husband prefers “Jump! You can do it!” It’s the protective instinct in me that can sometimes discourage my kids from taking chances and risks. Dads, however, are naturally more inclined to push and encourage kids to become risk takers, especially when it comes to physical challenges. Moms tend to teach by talking, whereas dads teach by doing.

Dads are more fun

As my daughter so lovingly pointed out earlier this year, I am not the funny parent. While I don’t think that the ability to tell jokes and make someone laugh is determined by gender, I think that what my four-year-old wanted to communicate was that daddy is the fun parent. Moms are typically the ones making the schedules and rules, making sure kids are eating and going to bed on time. Dads are better at throwing the schedule out the window and breaking the nap time rules. Typically when my kids are home with dad he just lets them fall asleep whenever and wherever. I come home to kids laying on the floor or couch, sleeping – while I usually rock them to sleep in a dark room with a sound machine at a specific time of the day! 

All this to say, we all have different styles of parenting! Neither are wrong and all should be celebrated. As a mom, you may even be more like the dads I’ve described. Either way, it’s time to do more to acknowledge that dads have an important role and that it should be respected as much as moms!