As you may know, I'm a dog guy. I grew up with a dog and so have my kids. As far as I'm concerned, my dogs are a very important part of my family and help make our house, a home. However, I make sure they know their place in my pack, they are treated like dogs and are expected to act like dogs. They are not allowed on the furniture, they only eat from their bowls and they ride in the back of the truck. I expect them to watch over the property and my stuff, by barking when strangers, dogs, raccoons, possums, cats or any other unwanted beastie gets to close to the fence. As a benefit, I receive absolute unconditional love from my dogs. Nothing matters, not the time of day, the weather, or my attitude, my dogs love me unconditionally. In fact, they don't even mind if I sit down and enjoy a beer after we've gone for a walk around the block in the evening.
It's also because of this unconditional love, I believe, people take advantage of their dogs. Dogs really aren't meant to wear clothes or costumes and I see people dressing up their poor dogs all the time. Dogs will do anything to make you happy and because your dog loves you so much, they will let you dress them and suffer humiliation for you. Dogs aren't people, don't dress them. Don't humiliate your dog stud, it just makes you look like a tool.
I'd also like to revisit for a moment what we talked about in regards to driving with your dog in the car. Get the damn dog off your lap, I think it's pretty ridiculous to see a woman driving with a dog in her lap and now I'm seeing guys do it. The dog needs to be in the back, either the back seat or the back of the truck, not hanging half their body out of the drivers window. You've seen the picture of Honey in the bed of the red truck, she's secured in with a chain, so she can move from side to side, but will not be able to go over the side. Or put them in the back seat with the window down enough for them to put their nose in the wind, this seems to be a necessity for a dog.
Another thing I've noticed about dogs, is, they like routine. It's one of the things that seems comforting to dogs. So get into a routine with your dog, it's the least you can do since they love you so much. I also believe that dogs and kids need a lot of the same things. They both need to go for walks with you, they both need to get dirty sometimes, they both need to be able to run as fast as they can for no apparent reason and they both need to spend time with you.
So go on tough guy, give your heart to a furry angel, you won't be sorry. As long as you don't expect them to be any more than a dog. You'll be surprised at the love and companionship you'll receive, as long as you remember to treat 'em like dogs.
Here's another beer i wanted to tell you guys about. One of my friends at work said it was worth a try. This is good beer, goes real well with the colder weather this time of year.
I've been a dad for the last 22 years and both of my kids just keep getting better with age. I've always said the older they get, the cooler they get. As some of you know fatherhood is not easy and is all consuming, yet it's the most rewarding job I've ever had.
Now, I'm not gonna tell you how to raise your kids, cause everyone has their own ideas and I think that there is more than one right way to go about it. What I can pass on to ya, is that you'll need to put you're childish ways aside, grow up and become the man your kid is gonna need and be the father they will look up to as an example of what a man is.
Now when I say childish ways, I'm not telling you to quit having fun or that fatherhood is deadly serious all the time (just some of the time). But you will need to realign your priorities. Since you're now part of a family, you are not the most important person in the world, the little person you just created is. It's now time to step up, cause this is not part time, it's full time and you will be a father for the rest of your life. There is a delicate balance you need to maintain. You don't want to lose track of the person you truly are, or those traits and traditions you want to pass on to your child. If you have a boy child, you will need to show him how to become a man and if you have a girl child, you'll need to show her how a man takes care of his family and the kind of man that makes a good father.
I'm lucky enough to have a next door neighbor that is a shining example of a guy that should have never been allowed to breed. He's a person that should never have the word father associated with him. I leave for work well before the sun comes up, but, I'm also usually home in the afternoon before most other people. And there's probably three to four days of the week when I come home that this guy (I can't call him a man or a father) is standing in his open garage door drinking beer and smoking cigarettes. This wouldn't be so bad, except, this is where the neighbor has been standing for at least half the day. He also, unfortunately, has a daughter, plus the baby and mom live there also, and a couple more of her family. But this piece of crap, who is probably close to thirty, would rather stand around all day smoking cigarettes and hanging out with the younger boys rather than step up and take care of his family like a man should. He's told me all his stories about where he use to work and where he wants to work (we've already talked about guys that are all talk and no action) and I'm really over it all. He just seems a little to comfortable living on a hand out and blaming everyone else for his lack of employment and the few times he's been out front with his daughter, he seems completely incompetent and removed from her.
So you need to get over it tough guy and learn how to hold that baby and change diapers and become a father. Once you've mastered that part the little bugger will get bigger and the set of challenges will change and they'll keep changing, so you'll need to stay on your toes. There won't be a lot of time for you to be consumed with yourself. Your little person will ask you questions you never thought you'd be asked and you won't have the answers for. Keep cool, don't sweat it, you can find the answer together. But you will need to be the most genuine person you have ever been. The truths you will tell and the situations you'll find yourself in with your child will stagger you.
Another thing you'll need to develop is tough skin, because there will be times when your child will hate you with every fiber of their being. But keep the situation in perspective, try to understand your child's point of view and try not to throw gas on the fire. Let everyone cool down and you'll find that the whole thing is usually not that big a deal, and when everyone is calm, it's easier to talk about what's going on. Remember that sometimes you need to be an authority figure first, and a friend second. That's not always easy, cause we all want to be liked and as a father, that's not always the case. But those moments are fleeting and you'll be surprised at the amount of love that you will receive from the little monster. They have this ability of blowing you away with the mountains of love they send your way.
So take care of 'em, feed 'em, clothe 'em and give 'em shelter. Add some water and lots of love and you will be amazed at what cool human beings they will become.
