There are loads of Dad’s out there. All of us came in part from one. All Dad’s are bonded by the common factor of experiencing fatherhood. For some of us, it bonds us. Despite this similarity, most of us are quite different, whether it be profession, hidden talent, parenting style, etc., we all tick differently. This feature, Who’s Your Daddyo & What Does He Do? or WYD&WDHD will feature a different Dad each time, all filling out and answering the same questions.
This time around, we talk to Andy Steinke of Decoding Dadhood. Sit back, grab a beer and get to know Andy.
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Name: Andy Steinke
Location: Benton Harbor, Michigan
Blog: www.decodingdadhood.blogspot.com
Current Gig/Job/Way of Spending Your Day: I’m the features editor for the newspaper here in Southwest Michigan. I edit stories, design pages and occasionally write and shoot photos.
Number of kids: Two, a 6-year-old son and a 2-year-old girl
One word that best describes how you Dad: Fun
What one thing (tool, device, accessory, etc.) makes your life as a Dad easier?
My camera. I can’t tell you how many friends and family members have come up to me and said, “I love your blog posts.” My posts are picture heavy because I use my blog as a way to document my kids growing up (and people don’t want to hear me prattle, they want to see pictures of the kids, so it’s a win-win). At the end of each year, I take my blog and make the posts into a book. Someday my kids will thank me for recording their lives in such detail. Or they’ll hate me. Fingers crossed it’s the first one.
What’s your favorite thing about being a Dad?
There are many things, but I’ll pick a fun one. My wife would hate this answer, because it drives her up a wall: having two “yes men.” When my son was young, I could ask him anything, and as long as I ended it with, “right, Augie?” he would answer “right.” My daughter has learned to do the same.
What every day thing are you better at than everyone else (doesn’t have to be Dad related)?
Time management. I can get a lot of things done because I simply make better use of my time than other people.
What do you do that makes your kids think you’re a super hero/super dad?
I roughhouse with them. They are kids, they usually just want someone to play with them. When it’s a tall person, all the better. We have this game my son coined “monster truck.” One day I was lying in bed on my stomach, and he climbed onto my back. I bounced up and down a couple of times like we were driving down a bumpy road and then “threw him off” into a pile of pillows. He said it was like a monster truck crashing. He loved it. He’s 6 now, so he’s a little harder to buck.
What centers you when the kids are acting up?
My kids are generally well behaved, so it doesn’t take much. Usually just sitting down with them is enough to get everyone settled down.
What’s your favorite way to unwind?
Grabbing a beer and watching the Cubs play, or sitting out by the firepit.
What’s your best Dad-related tip?
Set boundaries for the kids early, it’ll make everything going forward that much easier.
What is your favorite Dad story?
It happened early in my son’s life, and it’s still one of my favorites. My wife was out of town for a work-related thing, and it was one of the first times I had my son alone by myself for awhile. We decided to make brownies (http://bit.ly/2ayVTZ2). Everything went perfectly fine, but that’s not what the recounting on my blog would have you believe.
Fill in the blank: I’d love to see _________ answer these same questions.
Tom Meitner. He’s a friend of a friend who’s a good writer, but I don’t believe he has his own blog, which is a little sad.
Twin Daddyo 