father's day, here we go!
we loved on our mommies last month, now what about those daddies?!
ben & i are a li’l over three & a half years into parenthood and, whilst sometimes it makes my heart skip a beat, there is something so beautiful about unbridled daddy time.
mama can get wild & crazy too but it’s usually in the form of dance parties & water fights. daddytime, on the other hand, is a little more prone to booboos. but it also comes with squashed fears & built resilience.
now, if you read my mother’s day smile guide, you know i am all about the five love languages. should you fancy, many of those same ideas can be reinvented with dada in mind!
that said, if your daddy in question has a soft spot - and spoiler, they almost all do - perhaps consider recording and/or transcribing a conversational interview. it will fill just about every love bucket in some way, except perhaps physical touch.., you can deliver with a hug ;)
now, depending on who you are gifting, there are a couple directions to take this,
a - interviewing a dad for his son (i.e. your father in-law for your partner, your grandfather for your dad, etc.)
b - interviewing a son or daughter for their father (i.e. your kids for your partner, your father for your grandfather, etc.)
and some questions to get your wheels turning...
i looked to story corps for some inspiration & brainstormed some more questions from there. i hope the prompts below get your conversation(s) rolling for what will surely turn out to be a most memorable gift.
& p.s. if you want to record a phone conversation, i downloaded the Rev call recorder app and it worked seamlessly when i interviewed my 99-(!!)-year-old grandfather last year.
(and this year - even though leo's answers will consist of dada, mama, this, brother, and ball - i'm going to use the video app on my phone to interview the boys for ben. shhhhhh).
a la track A
- when did you first find out that you’d be a parent? how did you feel?
- can you describe the moment when you saw your child for the first time?
- how did you choose their name?
- how has being a parent changed you?
- what are your dreams for your child(ren)?
- do you remember when your (last) child left home for good?
- do you have any favorite stories about your kid(s)?
- what is the best part about being a dad?
- what is the hardest part about being a dad?
- what advice would you give me about raising my own kid(s)?
a la track B
- what is daddy’s first name?
- what is the favorite thing you and daddy do together?
- what is a secret you want to tell daddy?
- if daddy was a superhero, who would he be?
- what does daddy most like to eat? does he share with you?
- what do you like to share with daddy?
- what is daddy’s biggest talent?
- why do you love daddy?
- what is daddy's job?
- how tall is daddy? how tall are you?
- what makes daddy laugh?
- what is daddy really good at?
- what does daddy need to practice?