Brilliant Dad Feature Week  109 

This week we are very honoured to have one of the top bloggers in Canada which is Casey Palmer if you haven’t seen his blog I highly recommend you check it out you will not be disappointed he blogs at Casey Palmer, Canadian  Dad 

He is a thirty-something Canadian Dad from Toronto, looking to raise his multiracial family of four in an urban environment that never quits. Writing on parenting, racial identity, tech and more, he’s out to prove that well-crafted words really CAN change the world!

1. Have you always wanted to be a dad?

I knew I wanted to be a Dad sometime, I just didn’t plan when. When my wife had me commit to having our first by 30, I was nervous at first (and I have the posts to prove it), but the idea grew on me as we got through Sarah’s pregnancy.

2. How did you feel when your children were born?

Though we’re besties now, I feel I didn’t really start bonding with my eldest ’til he was about six months old and smiled at me for the first time! Maybe I was a crap Dad at the time. Maybe Sarah was a bit too overprotective since neither of us knew what we were doing. Whatever the reason, the first day he smiled the moment I walked in the door was the first day I really felt like a Dad. Instead of just feeling like “I made this,” I finally felt like “he’s mine.” And he only prepared us for his little brother a couple years later, an unexpected home birth after being awake 26 hours straight.
For his birth, I only felt one thing—relief.

3. What have been your most rewarding experiences been so far as a dad? 

I’ve only been a Dad a few years, but my sons are such key parts of my everyday life that there’s no simple answer for this question. I know I won’t even have a chance to get my coat off when I get in from work, with a toddler yanking on my sleeve to play with him and an infant clinging to my leg, begging to be picked up. Or that I’d better not wear my best clothes for bathtime because I’m guaranteed half the water’s not staying in the tub! There’s no end to the special moments the boys and I share—I just try to capture as many of them as I can so we have something to look back at later!

4. What are some of funniest moments to have happened to you as a dad? 

My toddler’s convinced he’s a comedian.
At 3, he’s already showing much of my personality and will go to any length for a gag. Whether that means making silly faces at his brother for a laugh, responding to our questions with ridiculous answers because he finds it funny,

5. Have  there been any situations with your children that you found difficult to cope with?

I’m not entirely sure how long a blog post you’re going for, but if you want a detailed list, we’re gonna be here a while.

Life with an infant that doesn’t sleep isn’t easy. Life with a toddler isn’t easy in general. Between temper tantrums, misbehaviour, and certain undesirable personality quirks that flare up now and then, I can’t say there aren’t times my mind isn’t just ready to explode.
But I need to remain patient—calmness is the only thing that quells emotional flare-ups at home, and I often need to remind myself they’re good boys… they just don’t yet know how to show that like adults do.

6. What are your dreams and hopes for your children? 

Ultimately, I’m making sure my boys won’t need to work as hard as I did to make something of the things they believe in. I want them to feel like no option in their lives is out of reach, and that everything we’ve done to prepare them for the world is enough to take them down whatever path they want to travel. I guess… I just want them happy living whatever life they want to live, and inspired enough to pay their good fortune forward to others. If they can be whoever they want to be while impacting the world in a positive way, I feel like I’ve done my job as a Dad correctly.