Difficulties when starting out as a stay at home dad

By Ken Burns about his experiences as a stay-at-home-dad

The first 2 years are the hardest to get through when you become a stay-at-home-dad. This is the time when the people you used to work with realise you won't be back - so many of your social contacts stop in the end. You can then have lots of time to read between the lines about why you have no contact with the guys anymore but there is point you have to accept what you've got and get in a position to reinvent yourself.

Women seem to have a lot more social contact than men but dads are happy to spend time at home with their kids and get on with their own housework / shopping routine. Some guys manage to get new contacts / parent help with kindy and school but these groups are mainly run by women. Not that men are deliberately left out but guys can find it harder to get involved as the meet-ups are often run by the same group of people for long periods.

Home Improvement

Since becoming an at-home Dad, I have taken it upon myself to save money by doing things around the house for which I would have previously hired a professional. I am now considering several home improvement projects. The first was installing new toilets.

Improving one's home by one's self should be carefully measured. From my days as the service manager at my family's garage, one concept stands out: it is one thing to change a part, it is another to diagnose a problem and then repair to solve that problem.

Interview with Matthew LaPlante

Unlike other father blogs, journalist Matthew LaPlante chose to address his daughter directly in his articles. The result is the very personal and beautiful blog "Dear Spike, Love Dad".

Stefan talks to Matthew about the adventures of being a stay-home-dad, sleep deprivation and trusting your fatherly instincts.

By DIYFather.com

Podcast - interview with Greg Barbera

A DIYFather Podcast featuring show hosts Scott Lancaster and co-hosts Eric Mooij and Stefan Korn.

Interview with Greg Barbera. In his blog "Hopeless Cases - confessions of a stay-at-home punk rock dad and all things in between" Greg Barbera writes about his experiences with fatherhood and life in Durham. This podcast is the first in a series of interviews with stay-at-home-dads.




By DIYFather.com