3 Things I learned in My First Month as a Stay-At-Home Dad

Learning and Mastering the Art of Multitasking is Essential

Life is ever-changing. It’s once been said that, “The only constant in life is change.” More than ever, this statement is ringing true in my life. I’ve consistently worked for 19 years straight and for the first time in my life, I find myself home with my kids. As I’m writing this, I’m starting to recall all of the various jobs I’ve had in my life. I’ve done child care (my very first job), I’ve worked at warehouses, I’ve done pest control, and many years of office work. But none of those jobs would prepare me for my current ‘job’, as a stay-at-home dad.

When March 2020 happened, the world changed, at least for the forseeable future. People have been laid off, displaced from their homes, and businesses have been forced to close; it’s been devastating for so many people. On the flip side, there have been so many people that have been fighting for survival. People that have refused to take no for an answer in these challenging times. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” There has absolutely been challenge and controversy as of late. A friend of mine runs a day care center at his house. He recently told me that they may have to close down because they are either not getting any kids or kids are showing up but they parents can’t afford to pay them. What do you do? That’s tough.

Recently, my wife went back to work after a long hiatus due to maternity leave then Covid-19. The plan was to send my oldest to school and my youngest to daycare, but neither of those plans were possible at the time. So we decided the best option for us was for me to stay home with the kids. My first thought was that this was going to be difficult and it definitely has been. But one thing is for sure; In this first month, I’ve grown a lot and I’ve learned a lot more.

Here are 3 things that I’ve learned so far:

1. Staying at home with the kids is definitely a REAL job — It’s a lot of hard work. I remember when I would watch shows like ‘I Love Lucy’ and ‘Everybody Loves Raymond’, and I would see the wives/moms stay home and do housework. When their partner would get home, they would be so tired. I would think, ‘How hard could that possibly be?’ It’s definitely hard. Your day never stops, your’e constantly cleaning, and there is no time to rest (especially with little ones). So My respect goes out to every mom and dad that stays home with the kids.
2. I can cook a lot better than I thought I could — I was already someone that had some go-to meals that I would cook. But since I’ve been home so much, I’ve taken up cooking. I’ve made a point to make breakfast everyday and cook dinner 3 nights per week. I’ve been downloading apps, watching cooking shows, and studying a lot of YouTube videos. Cooking is all about trial and error. I’ve made meals with too much salt. I’ve had some meals that were cooked too long. But for me, the process is everything. I enjoy the looks on my family’s faces when I make a good meal. I want to get better and better.
3. Learning and Mastering the Art of Multitasking is Essential — One of the things I’ve had to learn quickly was doing multiple things at once. There have been plenty of times when I had to feed my son, while cooking for my other son, while on a zoom meeting. That has happened on multiple occasions. Multitasking doesn’t work for all aspects of life, but for staying at home with the kids, it’s definitely essential. Things are about to get a little bit more difficult as school is about to start. But I’m looking forward to the challenge.

I’ve definitely enjoyed the time with my kids. It’s a privilege and an honor to be able to invest in my children. There’s nothing greater than, being able to be a big part of the development of my kids. There have been plenty of days that I’ve had to call my wife while she’s at work to vent. There’s been a few days that I’ve wanted to cry because it’s been difficult. But I’ve grown a lot and I’ve learned a lot.