The work trip you cancelled because you’ve been away too much. The meeting you skipped because you know you never should have agreed to it in the first place. The days you came in late because your kids needed a little more time at dropoff. The weekend where you blew off household projects and just did something fun together.
Do you think anyone has ever really regretted choosing family first? Maybe they missed out on some stuff here and there, but looking back on their life, do you think anyone even remembers?
But we will remember that day we blew off work, picked the kids up early, and drove up to the mountains. We’ll remember that we went to their recital. We’ll remember that we got ice cream and walked around the park.
With so many demands on our time, it helps to zoom out. To think about how you’re going to think about this later. Remember what we’re after: The crowded table. A close relationship with our kids. A sense that we didn’t waste this brief thing called their childhood.
So decide accordingly now. You won’t regret it.
P.S. We read the parenting books. We talk to other dads and moms. We take the advice of the doctors and the teachers and the coaches. We do the best we can, every day, no matter how exhausted we are.
But oftentimes what helps the most is some daily encouragement. One piece of solid advice—a reminder, a story from someone who has walked this path before, a historical quote or anecdote, a sturdy bit of parenting wisdom to grab onto during our most tiresome or frustrating days. And we need to be able to return to it. Often.
That’s the idea behind The Daily Dad book, and it’s why we’ve created a beautiful leatherbound edition. As parents, we need to revisit these ideas and this encouragement all the time—to remind us that we’re doing a good job and that we’re not alone. The leatherbound edition of The Daily Dad is built to last. It’s built to withstand daily reading for years to come—and to be passed down—a compendium of parenting wisdom to learn from, take solace in, and be inspired by.
