The man is like the offensive tackle. The woman is like the running back and the baby is like the football. Dad’s job is to get rid of all the obstacles for the running back to take that ball down to the end zone.
The end zone means your kid is independent, potty trained, no longer breastfeeding, etc.
Obstacles look like: house chores (especially at first while mom breastfeeds), feeding & hydrating mom, dealing with older siblings, taking care of your own needs. Protect mom from full night sleeplessness (give her at least one full four hour night stretch of rest). Protect her from your big reactions and emotions toward her, sometimes those postpartum thoughts and emotions she has can feel like you’ve lost the woman you married but keep your head in the game, don’t quit just cuz it’s hard.
And that it’s gonna take a while to get that ball to the end zone.
Plan for about three years, compound that per kid too. But if you think about it, it’s still such a short time in the lifespan. This hard time won’t last forever. What is 3+ years compared to an 80+ year lifespan? Almost nothing, 3.71%. It’s worth it. So worth it.
Lowell Perry, Husband, Dad of Six Engineer & Entrepreneur