Daddy 911
Posted on 23. Mar, 2006 by Brian Reid in General
I really need to watch more TV apparently. Loyal reader Jason ended up channel surfing over to Nanny 911 last week, astonished to find that the show — generally a showcase of bad parenting — including “a stay-at-home-dad who was amazing at his job.” Apparently, mom didn’t do so well with the kids when she returned home from work, necessitating a visit from the reality television gnomes.
From what little I’ve seen of Nanny 911 and Supernanny, the general plot is almost always the same: there is a well-meaning but usually overwhelmed mother and a father that is almost entirely checked out. I am encouraged — I might even call it progress — to hear that Nanny 911 has flipped that structure around. I hope it emphasizes that the gender of the parents isn’t all that important: dads can manage the household just find, moms can be overwhelmed … and vice versa. It’s all about the little steps.
Tim Williston
23. Mar, 2006
I watched that show, and probably still have it on tape. The Dad was a full time dad for several years, but he was getting ready to return to work, and his wife was going to stay at home with the kids.
The wife admitted that he was a great dad (and certainly was from what I saw). She felt that couldn’t do it and was apprehensive about taking over the role. Dad apparently started work while the show was being filmed.
It was very encouraging for me, and I was happy that they showed that dads can be wonderful parents and household managers too!
radicalshift
23. Mar, 2006
our lives are dynamic, and our performance changes from context to context. fixed generalities almost never do justice to the reality of this human existance.
MaxH
04. Apr, 2006
Actually, my wife and I both love Jo Frost (Supernanny), because she gets kids…getting down on eye level with them, giving them lots of chances to succeed, lots more encouragement when they do, and still more encouragement when they try and fail. She also knows the keys to discipline — consistency, clarity, and predictability.
Oh, and Leslie Steiner’s blog isn’t all bad…I found rebeldad.com because of your upcoming online chat with her!
-Max