Mr. Mom?

I had someone recently ask me if I get a lot of cracks about being "Mr. Mom." He was quite surprised that I rarely get Mr. Mom jokes. More often, I have friends say to me, "I wish I could do that," or "I wish my dad had done that," or "My dad was home a lot with me, and I am so thankful for those times."

In so many ways I am grateful. I'm grateful to be able to spend this time with Elisabeth, and I'm grateful for so many people who see the value of active parenting rather than ridiculing it. I'm also thankful that many are beginning to see that parenting is not just a mother's role.

I have to admit, I think that I get many questions that a full-time mom doesn't get, just because I'm male. People look at me a bit incredulously, yet have no such incredulity for a mom who does the same things. I think that in that way, I have a slightly different perspective into the double standard that is applied to full-time fathers and full-time mothers . . . and I don't think that I'm the one getting the short end of the stick.