3 minute read | By Tyler B., dad of four and CBR employee of 11 years

My 4 Favorite Things About Being a Dad

Father’s Day is such a unique holiday. Looking back, I’ve never loved the focus on me — whether it was birthdays, graduations, or other holidays. It’s more about the experience. I feel the excitement of others around me, coming together and being present, and that’s what brings me joy.

So why do I feel so differently about Father’s Day? Yes, it’s a day to focus on and celebrate me and other dads. But, it’s so much more than that.

I love seeing the excitement in my (four!) children’s eyes as they hand me the picture they’ve drawn or the present that they made, filled with pride about what they’ve created. It’s about them giving their time, and maybe even their allowance money, to buy me something small I may have mentioned in passing. It’s about seeing those values that my wife and I work so hard to instill in them come to life, with me at the front and center.

And it’s because, at the end of the day, it’s still not about me. It’s about them celebrating me as their dad, and I dig that.  

1. Snuggles and Sillies

There is nothing like a little one crawling into bed in the wee hours of the morning asking to snuggle. Or crawling up onto the couch, sitting in the crook of my arm and asking to read that story for the fifteenth time. The connection that is made through present, meaningful touch with my kids is paramount. At the same time, and with the same presence, I love letting creativity take us away into silliness. Games of tile turned to hot lava, dance parties to Taylor Swift, and tongue-in-cheek jokes with my older boys keep me going on a daily basis.

2. Unprompted, Surprise “I Love Yous”

As a dad, the feeling you get when your kids say those three magic words is irreplaceable. Sure, kids will be kids, and after a special treat like a Happy Meal or ice cream cone, it may be somewhat expected. But it’s the times where it’s completely unexpected, like sitting next to them at a sibling’s game, at the dinner table, or after a quick homework assist, that “I love you, Dad” or “I just love my Daddy” creates the internal fireworks.

3. Did They Really Just Say That?

I know we’ve all heard the sayings, “They just grow up too fast” or “You blink and they are off to college.” Let me tell you, I’m living that reality. As we go about our daily lives, and the kids grow like weeds, the weeks and months fly by. But every once in a while, they do something, say something, or ask something that makes me think: “Did they really just say that?”

Those are the moments that fill me with pride as a dad: that I’m gifted the opportunity to help raise another human being, and that they are growing up in front of me. Last week, as I came into my four-year-old’s room and without request started to grab a pair of shorts out of the drawer for him to wear, he said to me, “I already picked out these pants to wear, bro.” Yep, that was one of those moments.

4. Sibling Love

Having a 4, 6, and twin 14-year-olds creates many interesting dynamics within our household. We’ve got the “too cool for school” high school boys mixing with the “I just want to dance” little sister and the “I just like to smash cars” youngest brother. As a dad, the sense of pride and love I feel watching these four interact is incredible. Watching them on the trampoline, playing hide and seek or hot lava, or even creating scavenger hunts fills my cup each and every day.

Are we perfect? No way. But the love I see my kids bestow upon each other and the importance they put into family makes me feel like I’m doing something right. And there isn’t a cooler feeling as a dad.

-Tyler