Fathers.

Dads.

Papas.

Daddies.

Whatever it is you call ‘em, they’re special. For sure. But for some, what makes em special isn’t necessarily a good thing.

Absent fathers - whether physically or emotionally, or both.

Abusive fathers in the myriad of ways that one can abuse another.

Controlling, addicted, violent, unpredictable, the list goes on. Not everyone has had a great father.

I’m one of the lucky ones. My father (who is still living) was great. Is great. He was home almost every night for family dinner at the kitchen table, he helped with homework, he cheered us on at sporting events or the various extracurriculars my sisters and I were in, and he was present. He showed up. He cared. He set the bar for what I hoped for in a husband and the father for our future children and man, did I luck out again. The father of my children is a stud. Fans of This Is Us, my husband is so very similar to Jack Pearson it was painful to watch the show at times. I’d weep throughout seasons one and two at the thought of something tragic happening to Matt, at the thought of my kids not having him around. And actually, the fear of losing him is number one on my list of fears - and one of the many things I work on regularly with my therapist!

For the fathers who come across this post, my hat is off to you. Thank you for helping populate the planet, supporting birthing people, and helping to raise the next generation. I hope you were celebrated on Father’s Day and that the one(s) that you parent lights up your life like my children do for my husband.

For the ones reading this post who are doing life without a dad in the picture, whether voluntarily or not, I see you. My hat goes off to you too. Solo parenting is no joke, living life wondering who the other half of the duo is that made you is no walk in the park either. This blog, my services, my heart is for all wherever they fall in the spectrum of parenting. One parent homes, two moms in the home, two dads, one grandparent, a foster parent, a family friend who’s raising the littles of another, we are all one and it is the unity and love of us all that is making change in the lives of the children in our midst.