What we appreciate about dads
Have you stopped laughing yet? Because if you’ve settled down, I do have a question for the moms out there: Considering the hilarious altered images above or last week’s findings about a more serious phenomenon called “maternal gatekeeping,” are women supposed to not check in about our kids? No way! My need for reassurance is just as important as Jeff’s need for me to trust his judgment with the kids.
Thankfully, these two needs do not need to be at odds.
In my situation, for example, I can ask for grace from Jeff in advance as I seek out reassurance from him anyway. He can let me know how important it is to him that I trust his judgment. And, in return, I can think ahead of time about ways to also convey how much I appreciate Jeff and how well he loves and leads our kids.
When I asked Jeff his opinion on this whole thing, he said, “What is needed is compassion with one another and a recognition that this just may be the way my spouse is wired – it doesn’t mean either of us is a bad parent. We also have to tell ourselves that this wiring difference doesn’t mean that our spouse thinks we’re a bad parent, either.”
Ladies, most of you truly appreciate the ways your men lead. So in recent weeks we’ve asked moms what they most value about their men. Dads, I think you’ll be encouraged at the common threads that emerged.
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