My wife Kathy and I sat back with adult bevvies in hand (recommended) and pressed the play button.

As long time owners of various breeds of kiddie vans we immediately bonded with the band members as they sang about experiences resembling ours. We had a hard time fitting our kids bedtime routines into our schedule that night as we couldn’t wait to hear the next song seemingly written about us.

These dads don’t sing “pink” songs with blue birds tweeting in the background. Their songs are in black, gray, and white. They sing it like it is (it being parenthood). Most parents should be able to relate to these songs and while they may not win American Idol they are the neighbors we wish we had. We recommend their music for yourselves and they would make for great gifts for just about any occasion.

Their official Bio:

The POP Stars are a band of Fathers who perform original songs about the joys, trials and tribulations of parenthood. Their upbeat music gets little ones dancing and parents laughing, with topics ranging from sleep deprivation and spilt milk to minivans, potty training and unwanted advice from the in-laws. The Pop Stars have played all around New England in coffeehouses, bookstores, festivals, benefits and have traveled as far as New York City to be one of the few dad bands to play the Mamapalooza Festival for the past two years. They have performed at Boston’s George’s island Father’s day events, Foxboro’s Orpheum theater and have had feature articles in the Boston Globe and Bay State Parent Magazine. They have also been seen on the Hallmark Channel and WCVB’s Chronicle.

You can find the POP Stars online at:

The POP Stars on MySpace

The POP Stars on Facebook

ReverbNation.com/thepopstars

A POP Stars YouTube video:

Click here to view the embedded video.

_______________________________________________________________

The video gives the viewer a glimpse into the mindset of a stay-at-home dad, including the trying moments when the uniqueness of what they do for living crashes up against what “society” is used to.

The mom author of the Little Black Journal is a big fan of co-ed baby showers, but pay close attention to these comments made by Ms. Lil’ Black Journal in her post explaining why she’s a fan:

“let me tell you, there is no funnier sight than a group of blind-folded men try to fumble their way through putting a diaper on a stuffed animal”

and…

“the presence of men make for some good laughs”

So dads…, before you get snookered into attending one of these co-ed baby showers be advised that you are the comedy routine! If you go at least demand some compensation and/or full rights and control over any pics or video taken at the “baby shower”.

For more check out the post at Little Black Journal. (Hint: don’t dare give her your name or email address!)

Recently I added some YouTube video tributes for dads on Dadz TV. It was my way of acknowledging these dads and their family’s attempt to show their love and respect. I wish I could nothing but find these tributes and posts to help keep the memories of these lost dads alive.

Here’s a site I just stumbled upon that prompted me to write about this. It’s a site created to honor “Whale” Mark Presley Sr. This gentleman passed away on July 26th this year. Seems like the kind of guy we’d all want to know. Say a prayer for the Son of Whale and their family.

I score the execution at 9.0 and form at 7.5. The key for scoring so high on execution was the all important “whaaat!?” whistling technique used at the end of the tumbling move.

Dictionary for Dads

They don’t accept advertising or sponsorships. They are simply driven to share valuable information with dads. Here are a few of the topics you will find valuable information on:

• Understanding Aggression
  
• Working Parents
• Parents Across America Blog
• Pool/Water Safety
• Absent Fathers
• Internet Safety
• Controlling Dads
• Judgmental Dads
• Teenage Violence

Better preparation and planning is the key here dads!

More Home and Away on dadz: Home and Away

More Daddy’s Home on dadz: Daddy’s Home

For more: Home and Away on Dadz

• Educating and inspiring fathers, through public awareness campaigns, research, and other resources.
• Equipping and developing leaders of national, state, and community fatherhood initiatives through curricula, training, and technical assistance.
• Engaging every sector of society through strategic alliances and partnerships.

Some of the key programs they offer include:

• Doctor Dad – Developed by healthcare professionals, this program is a curriculum that teaches dads how to care for the basic health needs of their children and how to make their home kid safe.
• 24/7 Dad - This is a cutting-edge, in-depth fathering skills program that helps men develop the right attitudes, knowledge, and fathering skills needed to get involved with their children.

• Christian-based 27/7 Dad – A specialized version of their most popular ’24/7 Dad’ program. This version of their fathering skills program was developed specifically for churches and Christian organizations to use to reach fathers in their congregation or to use in engaging fathers in their local community.

For all of their programs visit their training page at: Fatherhood Training.

They also offer membership in their Dads Club.

Membership costs a one-time fee of $30 and is for life. You’ll get plenty of goodies (t-shirt, discounts, and more), but most importantly you’ll be helping a great cause including your relationship with your kids!

If you’re interested in learning more about fatherhood and how having involved dads can help society as a whole then check out their research on fatherhood.