Stories of fathers

“The best time with children is… now, at this very moment! Splashing in puddles until water flows from her rubber boots and my daughter tells me herself that maybe it’s enough already. Reading books, even though she knows those fairy tales by heart, and corrects me if I miss a word. Making pancakes for breakfast together, and before going to bed letting her choose a story from my childhood that she’d like to hear”

“Parenthood is a very full and thoroughly comprehensive feeling. It encompasses so much: happiness, fear, longing, joy, responsibility, annoyance, love, pride, etc. Before the birth of a child, I have never felt anything like this. Retrospectively, the past seems quite empty”

“Every day now is impressive in its own way because every day we have different adventures together and new conversations follow, although we might be speaking in different languages”

“Kasparas’ and Oskaras’ arrival into this world was very much anticipated, I was preparing for it. But now I can say that you can’t really prepare for it. It’s the most amazing thing that has happened in my life. They turned my life upside down”

“When a child appears in one’s life, everything turns upside down in the truest sense of this saying. When another one appears, everything falls into place, because you can’t escape from love. Having two children means twice as much love”

“My most important task now is to raise my beloved and loving sons. Brave, curious, just. I have experienced bullying, so I understand what it means to be rejected or abused. I try to raise my children not only with thick skin for the opinions of others or the “treat others as you want to be treated” mentality”

“Cuddling a sleeping child. This is a incredible feeling for both the father and the child, who soundly sleeps in the meantime. With my child, I try to be honest and not to lie. Communication that is based on trust is the most valuable”

“I would like to encourage other dads to spend more time with their children. It’s just fun – it’s fun to tickle, cuddle, and play hide-and-seek. When you spend time with kids, you get to be a kid yourself for a little bit”

“Trying to balance parenting with work is tricky. Sometimes you have to work at home, at other times – leave work later. I noticed that spending quality time that’s fully dedicated to the children (even if it is just half an hour or an hour) is much more effective than spending loads of time together, for example, watching TV or constantly checking the phone.”

“In my opinion, the arrival of a child “leads” the man himself to the real, adult world. If until then, you can afford to fool around, be careless, and look at your duties and responsibilities light-heartedly, after the birth of a child, all of it changes”

“The hardest thing for me as a dad is my “wheelchair situation”. Due to the infrastructure and the mobility of the wheelchair, I cannot realise all my dreams and the dad duties. But constantly working on yourself and trying to be a better dad every day is just as difficult”

“Spending time together strengthens the connection and makes it qualitatively different: the child starts reacting to you, looking at you differently, wanting to be together, to do something together”

“When raising our little ones, we want them to grow up to be driven, creative, hardworking people, not to become “passive knights of the sofa”. This encourages us to look for the best ways to educate our children”

“From the very start of our relationship, creating an equal partnership was very important to us both. In the same way, it was important to us that our child would have both parents actively involved in their life”

“Sometimes, when I catch myself looking at that tiny face soundly asleep, or diligently focused with their little tongue out, trying to draw another work of art, I think to myself: how can such a small person hold this much love?”

“All the sleepless nights are repaid in full with my son’s gleeful giggles, and all the anxiety of being a father no longer matters when I hear my baby’s happy chatter and sincere laughter.”

“I remember the moment I found out that my partner was expecting – it was far from the scenario of a Hollywood movie, and less dramatic than you would expect. I was sitting in the window store in front of the manager, signing an invoice, when suddenly my phone rang.”

“Our daughter is only 6 months old, so the real challenges of parenting are still ahead, but what has really changed for me is my attitude and respect that I now feel toward people who are raising children. Until Gilė was born, it was hard for me to imagine what it was like to be a parent.”

“For me, raising a child is the greatest joy. I did not encounter any major difficulties nor challenges. Of course, the reason for this is also the mother, who loves her daughter even more. My wife and I call it “team work”.”

“I am truly glad that, after the birth of my second child, I decided to switch roles with my wife. I see how fast my son is growing up and how many wonderful moments I had missed just because I was too concerned of “What would people say?”

“The moment that Rusnė was born changed both me and my entire life. I believe that every man should participate in the birth of his child, and to begin bonding with him or her even before the child is born, and continue doing so with each passing day.”

“When you become a father (a true father), being one becomes very wonderful and interesting. Life truly becomes so much more colourful. “

“Being a father means reliving your own childhood, learning to play, crawl, stand up and walk together.”

“Being a dad is not hard. Nor is becoming one. The most difficult part is to get through the very different stages of child development: when entering into the novel (or forgotten) infancy, then “jumping” into the baby’s fussy childhood years, and finally, transitioning to the often difficult-to-manage and emotional teenage years.”

“I am the father of two wonderful boys. They are 4.5 month old twins who I and my wife both take care of.”