Dads! How long does the trip need to be for you to do the old "here's a gift from my trip"? I just did an overnight in London and didn't bring anything home for the family. Where's the line?!

Morning Fathers, I've been thinking about something I'd written in the mission of this community. Whether or not we'd ever thought about fatherhood prior to having kids I'd bet we'd either had big vision for our life or big plans for the type of dad we'd be for our kids. I know I get caught up in doing all the things I have to do for my son to have a roof over his head, food in his belly and a story at bedtime. I don't think a bad dad by any means but I'm not the dad I want to be for him. I want him to look at me and see what's possible with hard work and clear vision. That's what made me realize that my dreams are no long things I want to do. They're things I HAVE to do. Not because I want him to be spoiled by things but to be spoiled by choice. Not because I haven't made a good life for my family but to make the life I'd envisioned for them. Your dreams aren't something that need abandoning. Focus, clarity and effort. What's your dream?

Dark humour alert- I don’t know about you other dads, but I assume you do everything in your power to provide for your kid(s) and family. And it’s a ball ache some times trying to balance work, attention to the families wants and needs and take a moment to breathe. Going from the world of performing, doing what I love, to grinding in hospitality once again has been a shift on top of becoming a dad. And the harsh reality of my parents telling me to “get a real job” when I was younger has set in. Don’t get me wrong I’m not sh*tting on hospitality as it’s one of the more difficult jobs I’ve ever had. But I look at other dads of the same age achieving far more and in a more comfortable position and it sucks sometimes. Add on the fact- the summer season was rough too, working as senior management for a wedding venue getting in at 1-2am and awoken to a toddler at 7am. It sucks. The difficulty wasn’t getting up, it’s the being present. I was struggling to be awake enough to play with my boy, to take the time to listen to my wife and try not to crumble. No amount of caffeine seems to do anything anymore, and hard drugs aren’t on the table, other than ibuprofen for my knees and back, (the thirties are fun). At times I felt like a piece of shit dad and husband but then remember that I’m giving everything I can to provide for those that matter most. That and I could be worse, I could be Josef Fritzl.