Comments on: Daddy Daycare?

By: phil miller

phil miller — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 12:40:15 +0000

Matthew is right on with his comment.

By: The Blogfathers Blog Archive » Are you up for a Daddy Daycare? - Dads You Can't Refuse

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 22:28:48 +0000

[...] ran across an interesting post today about the notion that a man would be at a disadvantage if he ran his own daycare. The issue [...]

By: Barb Roesler

Barb Roesler — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 16:18:56 +0000

Whoops! Sorry, tech idiot. Here’s the rest…

That being said, my brother in law is a super stay at home dad, who I have very comfortably left my kids with. He really brings things to the table that a female might not, especially for young boys learning how to be men. Its all about knowing the person and judging their personality and abilities.

By: Barb Roesler

Barb Roesler — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 16:13:14 +0000

This may be a frame of reference issue. In personal experience, I know that my husband’s forte is not child care. He’s a great dad, excellent provider, super at rough housing and special stuff like fishing trips and tractor rides, but in our household I take on all the day to day maintenance stuff. And we all look at our world through glasses tinted by our own experience.

By: Matthew

Matthew — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 14:34:04 +0000

I work for the YMCA and have several childcare sites at my branch. I know from firsthand experience that men are looked at from a different perspective than women. Men almost always have to fight that “he might be a child molester” mentality. Women get the benefit of the doubt. Not fair and really not founded in anything but what the media feeds us on the nightly news.

Matthews last blog post..What am I going to be when I grow up, Daddy?

By: Michelle

Michelle — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 13:54:05 +0000

I think James is right about the “Dateline effect”. My initial thought about whether I’d leave my boys at a “Daddy daycare” was no way. But I have no rational reason for this. I know that being male doesn’t make the person bad with kids or a pervert. But, yet, there’s that feeling that a man is somehow less trustworthy with kids than a woman. After all, you’re supposed to tell your kids if they’re lost to find a _mom_ with kids, not a _dad_ with kids.

That’s really sad. It shouldn’t be that way, but the stereotype has been reinforced for so long that, despite my intellectual “knowing” that there’s no reason for it, I have to admit I would be uncomfortable leaving them with a guy. And if I know that it’s irrational and still feel that way, I suspect there’s a lot of people who would simply say “no way” without even questioning themselves.

Michelle

By: Jessica Pederson

Jessica Pederson — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 11:59:54 +0000

I would be completely open to the idea of a Daddy Day care as my favorite elementary teachers, day camp counselors and principals were men. And as you said, guys bring a different kind of fun to interacting with kids that i think is important and i’m sure there are lots of men out there that have more patience than I do!

By: James

James — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 11:43:24 +0000

I do think it would be much more difficult for a man to run a daycare/babysitting service. As a male elementary teacher I am really careful about how I interact with the kids. I’m not comfortable showing the same affection to students that my female colleagues do. There have been too many “Dateline-like” episodes on disgusting, criminal male teachers that prey on kids for most people to not have some stereotype of male teachers, especially of younger students. I don’t take it too personally, but it does stink that I can’t form the same relationships with kids that 95% of the teachers in our school can. Teaching is a little different than private daycare, but I think your friend would face many of the same attitudes and preconceptions that I do.

By: Christian Long

Christian Long — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 05:47:49 +0000

Faced this paradox in real time just yesterday.

One of our absolute top-notch, go-to babysitters — the kind we truly trust our kid’s life with — was busy this Friday night while we’ll be out for the evening. She suggested, however, that her husband would be available.

Keep in mind, our baby son has stayed at her house for 2 nights last year; her husband was one-half of the ‘team’ that took care of him.

Keep in mind, when she comes to our house to babysit, he often comes with her. And our son is super comfortable with both of them.

And yet, even as a proud papa (and daddy-blogger) who truly believes that both genders can do brilliant work when it comes to taking good care of a kiddo, there was an honest hesitation before we decided what to do.

My wife and I asked two simple questions: “Is there any reason why he wouldn’t do a great job?” and “Do you trust him?”

Both were answered quickly.

We called our go-to babysitter back, the one we adore, the one who offered her husband, the one who’s husband was one half of a great team that took care of him for 2 consecutive over-nights when we were out of town on business…

…and we said, “We’d love to have him come over and take care of our son.”

And there have been zero regrets/second thoughts since.
My wife and I spent

By: Kristen

Kristen — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 02:59:24 +0000

If he came highly recommended and I got a good feel for the place when I visited, then I would feel completely comfortable leaving my children with him.