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We're up for an award

The City Dads Group website has been nominated for a "Richard and Linda Eyre Family Is Award" for its parenting content that "effectively ... Celebrates Commitment, Popularizes Parenting, Bolsters Balance, and Validates Values."

If you have a minute to spare and want to throw a vote our way for the People's Choice, we'd appreciate it.

Dad 2.0 brings fatherhood talk to D.C.

Dad 2.0, the conference for fathers wanting to participate in a conversation about the changing voice and perception of modern fatherhood, will bring its usual strong lineup of speakers and panelists for professional and personal development to Washington, D.C., on Feb. 27-29.

City Dads Group will once again be a media partner for Dad 2.0, a role it has played since 2014. It uses the conference as a national meetup opportunity for its leadership and members, who play an active role in providing content for the event (that's Jason Greene of our City Dads NYC in the photo, speaking at last year's event).

Up your parenting game in 2020

Nobody's a perfect parent. But here's how some of our dads are trying:  

• Work on your "grateful mindset" The greatest parenting hack may just be in your head.
• Dads -- don't try to be the mom A humorous look at how to own your manhood as a parent.
• Remember the past for a better future There's a lesson for kids in knowing history.
• A teenage daughter's resolutions for her dad Start by recognizing that she's growing up

Fathers' input sought for parenting book

Feel like your opinion as a father often doesn't count when it comes to parenting? Here's your chance to be heard.

A friend of City Dads Group is writing a book about modern parenting and wants to hear from dads like you. The survey takes 7 to 10 minutes to complete and is anonymous.

Keeping it clean cut for the holidays

City Dads members in 11 U.S. cities and their kids received the gift of free hair cuts and stylings last month, thanks for Dove Men+Care grooming products and Bishops Cuts/Colors.

Our guys and their children were special guests for the second annual "Holiday Shear" event, held Dec. 14. The event is part of a nationwide initiative from DM+C, a longtime partner of City Dads, designed to give families the gift of quality time during the holiday season.

Get it together -- for fun or a good cause

We're up for an award

The City Dads Group website has been nominated for a "Richard and Linda Eyre Family Is Award" for its parenting content that "effectively ... Celebrates Commitment, Popularizes Parenting, Bolsters Balance, and Validates Values."

If you have a minute to spare and want to throw a vote our way for the People's Choice, we'd appreciate it.

Dad 2.0 brings fatherhood talk to D.C.

Dad 2.0, the conference for fathers wanting to participate in a conversation about the changing voice and perception of modern fatherhood, will bring its usual strong lineup of speakers and panelists for professional and personal development to Washington, D.C., on Feb. 27-29.

City Dads Group will once again be a media partner for Dad 2.0, a role it has played since 2014. It uses the conference as a national meetup opportunity for its leadership and members, who play an active role in providing content for the event (that's Jason Greene of our City Dads NYC in the photo, speaking at last year's event).

Up your parenting game in 2020

Nobody's a perfect parent. But here's how some of our dads are trying:  

• Work on your "grateful mindset" The greatest parenting hack may just be in your head.
• Dads -- don't try to be the mom A humorous look at how to own your manhood as a parent.
• Remember the past for a better future There's a lesson for kids in knowing history.
• A teenage daughter's resolutions for her dad Start by recognizing that she's growing up

Fathers' input sought for parenting book

Feel like your opinion as a father often doesn't count when it comes to parenting? Here's your chance to be heard.

A friend of City Dads Group is writing a book about modern parenting and wants to hear from dads like you. The survey takes 7 to 10 minutes to complete and is anonymous.

Keeping it clean cut for the holidays

City Dads members in 11 U.S. cities and their kids received the gift of free hair cuts and stylings last month, thanks for Dove Men+Care grooming products and Bishops Cuts/Colors.

Our guys and their children were special guests for the second annual "Holiday Shear" event, held Dec. 14. The event is part of a nationwide initiative from DM+C, a longtime partner of City Dads, designed to give families the gift of quality time during the holiday season.

Get it together -- for fun or a good cause

How well do you juggle work & family life?

Being a parent is tough enough on its own, but the stress and challenges greatly increase when your family is also depending on your paycheck. Here how some of our dads and dad friends with have made it work: 

• Structure your life as you do your work You can parent with efficiency if you adopt a new mindset.
• Seek flexibility at work Become a role model for telecommuting success on the job and at the home.
• Re-assess your family's tech obsessions Is the digital world splitting your family apart? Try these ideas to promote more togetherness.
• Don't let your social life evaporate Parenting affects your friendships. Don't let them slip away.

Orlando group leader to speak at Dad 2.0

Congratulations to Flor Mercado (shown above with his daughter), co-organizer of Orlando City Dads, who has been chosen to be a spotlight blogger reader at the Dad 2.0 summit in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 27-29. Mercado, a member of the group since August 2018, writes the blog Dad Style 99.

Dad 2.0 is a conference for fathers wanting to participate in a conversation with brands, marketers and influencers about the changing voice and perception of modern fatherhood. City Dads Group will once again be a media partner for the event.

Sweet dad jokes for your Valentine

Do you have a date for Valentine’s Day? Of course you do. February 14th. The same date it is every year.

If you like a good chuckle or a great groan, click below to read our collection of dad jokes just for cupid's favorite holiday.

These guys aim for fatherhood fun

How well do you juggle work & family life?

Being a parent is tough enough on its own, but the stress and challenges greatly increase when your family is also depending on your paycheck. Here how some of our dads and dad friends with have made it work: 

• Structure your life as you do your work You can parent with efficiency if you adopt a new mindset.
• Seek flexibility at work Become a role model for telecommuting success on the job and at the home.
• Re-assess your family's tech obsessions Is the digital world splitting your family apart? Try these ideas to promote more togetherness.
• Don't let your social life evaporate Parenting affects your friendships. Don't let them slip away.

Orlando group leader to speak at Dad 2.0

Congratulations to Flor Mercado (shown above with his daughter), co-organizer of Orlando City Dads, who has been chosen to be a spotlight blogger reader at the Dad 2.0 summit in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 27-29. Mercado, a member of the group since August 2018, writes the blog Dad Style 99.

Dad 2.0 is a conference for fathers wanting to participate in a conversation with brands, marketers and influencers about the changing voice and perception of modern fatherhood. City Dads Group will once again be a media partner for the event.

Sweet dad jokes for your Valentine

Do you have a date for Valentine’s Day? Of course you do. February 14th. The same date it is every year.

If you like a good chuckle or a great groan, click below to read our collection of dad jokes just for cupid's favorite holiday.

These guys aim for fatherhood fun

Keep it together when life keeps you apart

We hope this finds you and your family safe, healthy and happy. These are trying times, but remember: We really are all in this together.

Our work of getting fathers together to share stories, experiences and friendships with one another is still going on, only the locations have changed. Rather than meetings on playgrounds or in taprooms, our dads have been setting up virtual coffees and happy hours online. These sessions still allow our members to do what they do best: talk about the drudgery, the excitement, the pains and the joys of parenthood.

We encourage you to check the Meetup or Facebook page of your local City Dads Group for information about when these are talking place. Please join us when and where you can so you see that you are not alone.

Fatherly advice for the times

Here''s some helpful words from our City Dads Group blog about some of the issues you may be dealing with during the COVID-19 shut-in:

• Remote Work Lets You Get Job Done on Your Own Terms: Work-at-home father and Orlando Dads Group co-organizer Marlon Gutierrez on how to make a smooth and successful transition from corporate office to home office.
• Parental Advice to Get You Through the Unemployment Blues: Brandon Billinger of our Kansas City Dads Group has been laid off three times in his career. Each time he bounced back.
• Homeschooling Tips, Advice from Father Who Has Done it Before NYC Dads Group member Jason Greene offers tips and suggestions from his days of homeschooling his own children.
• Coping Strategies to Help Families Hit the Brakes Being confined together is probably only adding to the stress, anxiety and worries of these uncertain times. Learn to practice mental distancing.
• Child''s Birthday Party Plans Ruined by COVID-19? Not on Your Watch Great ideas for making your child''s celebration special when no one can come over. (Big plus - no goodie bags!)

L.A. Dad working on ventilator project

Los Angeles Dads Group co-organizer Chris Jung is leading a team of engineers creating an emergency ventilator that can be reproduced using 3D printing technology. The project is an attempt to update and mass produce a product used by the U.S. Army in the 1960s.

Helping isolated pediatric patients

NYC Dads Group (and City Dads Group) co-founder Matt Schneider and his family spent a recent weekend putting together activity kits for Project Sunshine. The kits help pediatric hospital patients, many of whom are isolated or allowed very few visitors because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Although they made the kits in their Manhattan home, their work went to help patients at Lurie Children''s Hospital of Chicago.

At-home dad conference seeks speakers

The National At-Home Dad Network is accepting proposals for presentations, breakout sessions, roundtables and panel discussions for HomeDadCon 2020 (aka, the 25th Annual At-Home Dads Convention), slated for Oct. 8-10 in Cincinnati.

If you are interested in speaking or have an idea for a speaker or topic, click the button below. For more info on the conference or to buy a ticket, visit HomeDadCon.org.

City Dads star in "How To" video series

Staying home all day, every day, with the kids is new for many fathers during the COVID-19 crisis. To help, City Dads Group is working with longtime partner Dove Men+Care to create a series of "how to" videos for the company's new "Dads Care" campaign.

The short videos, created by fathers for fathers, cover topics relevant to the times. Initial video titles include "How to Keep Your Kids Occupied While Working from Home," "How to Give a Kid a Haircut (and Not Mess It Up)," and "How to Help Kids Overcome Fear."

New videos, like the one above featuring Aaron Sheldon of our Columbus Dads Group in Ohio, and his son, will appear weekly through July.

These guys may be onto something

Here''s some helpful words from our City Dads Group blog about a few of the issues you may be dealing with during the COVID-19 shut-in:

• Family Routines Essential During This ''Unscheduled'' Time Columnist Vincent O''Keefe writes about finding your groove and re-evaluating what is important in your home life while hunkered down with family.
• Video Games Bond Fathers, Sons Through the Generations Shannon Carpenter of our Kansas City Dads Group hilariously shares a tale about his many days conquering a digital world with one of his children. just like he once did with his father.
• Saying ''I''m Sorry'' Tells Your Kids You Promise to Do Better Many of us are running short on patience. Brandon Billinger of the Kansas City Dads Group advises you on how to make it better.

Talking beers ... and fatherhood

Greg Washington, left, is founder of our Madison Dads Group in Wisconsin and the Daddy Porter beer group on Facebook. The group normally has a weekly "Brothers in Booze" broadcast featuring interviews and beer tastings, but with people housebound these past two months, Greg has expanded the schedule and widened the scope of interviewees, including this one with City Dads Group co-founder Matt Schneider.

Make every voice heard on Election Day

We''re not going to preach to you about how to vote this Election Day. 

We are going to preach that you DO vote -- from U.S. president on down -- and that you help other eligible voters exercise their right to select our leaders, too, whether it''s in person on Nov. 3, at an early-voting polling site or by mail/drop-off box.

The most worrisome aspect of this election season is not the rhetoric about what someone will or won''t do if in office. It''s the baseless accusations of widespread voter fraud, that elections have been rigged (only if one side loses, of course), and the attempts of some to suppress some Americans'' right to vote.

So educate yourself on the issues, then vote. Remind your friends and family to do the same. Offer an elderly or disabled neighbor a lift to the polls. Sign up to be a non-partisan Election Protection volunteer.

Set the example for your children about the value of democracy. They are watching and depend on you.

Don''t forget your flu shot

With all the worries about COVID-19, don''t overlook the importance of you and your children getting flu shots this year. Seasonal flu and COVID have some similar symptoms but you surely don''t want to confuse the two.

An annual flu shot is safe, widely available at drug stores and supermarkets as well as doctor''s offices, often without cost if you have insurance (and low cost if you don''t), and it can help protect you and your loved ones in a time when our health care system is already being stretched thin.

Holding onto hope

Feeling overwhelmed by the pandemic and all its brought like full-time remote learning for your kids and a halt to youth sports? Our City Dads Group blog contributors have encouraging words and ideas on how to make the best of this new world:

• Light Still Can Be Found Even Amid This Darkness: Many parents and children are mired in fear from what they see and hear in the news. But even in the darkest of times, some light seeps through.
• Observe Life Through Fresh Eyes Just Like Young Children Do: Don''t allow habit and expectation to become blinders that restrict understanding of all you observe day in and day out.
• Jenga an Adapt Metaphor for Handling for Pandemic Schooling: Like in the classic block game, we must learn from our mistakes so we can repair this fragile tower and rebuild it better than ever before.
• Pandemic Can Help Reframe Your Kids' Lives in Positive Ways: Rather than succumb to emptiness, parents should remind kids how some gaps in our lives are now being filled in good ways through conversation, togetherness and ingenuity.

Spending so much time at home with the kids these past months means separation anxiety is an issue for many parents when they do have to leave them at school or daycare. The New York Times recently featured our own Greg Clapp from Milwaukee Dads Group and Sean Leacy from the Puget Sound Dads Group talking about how they cope with this issue.

Get your Halloween dad jokes here

Make every voice heard on Election Day

We''re not going to preach to you about how to vote this Election Day. 

We are going to preach that you DO vote -- from U.S. president on down -- and that you help other eligible voters exercise their right to select our leaders, too, whether it''s in person on Nov. 3, at an early-voting polling site or by mail/drop-off box.

The most worrisome aspect of this election season is not the rhetoric about what someone will or won''t do if in office. It''s the baseless accusations of widespread voter fraud, that elections have been rigged (only if one side loses, of course), and the attempts of some to suppress some Americans'' right to vote.

So educate yourself on the issues, then vote. Remind your friends and family to do the same. Offer an elderly or disabled neighbor a lift to the polls. Sign up to be a non-partisan Election Protection volunteer.

Set the example for your children about the value of democracy. They are watching and depend on you.

Don''t forget your flu shot

With all the worries about COVID-19, don''t overlook the importance of you and your children getting flu shots this year. Seasonal flu and COVID have some similar symptoms but you surely don''t want to confuse the two.

An annual flu shot is safe, widely available at drug stores and supermarkets as well as doctor''s offices, often without cost if you have insurance (and low cost if you don''t), and it can help protect you and your loved ones in a time when our health care system is already being stretched thin.

Holding onto hope

Feeling overwhelmed by the pandemic and all its brought like full-time remote learning for your kids and a halt to youth sports? Our City Dads Group blog contributors have encouraging words and ideas on how to make the best of this new world:

• Light Still Can Be Found Even Amid This Darkness: Many parents and children are mired in fear from what they see and hear in the news. But even in the darkest of times, some light seeps through.
• Observe Life Through Fresh Eyes Just Like Young Children Do: Don''t allow habit and expectation to become blinders that restrict understanding of all you observe day in and day out.
• Jenga an Adapt Metaphor for Handling for Pandemic Schooling: Like in the classic block game, we must learn from our mistakes so we can repair this fragile tower and rebuild it better than ever before.
• Pandemic Can Help Reframe Your Kids' Lives in Positive Ways: Rather than succumb to emptiness, parents should remind kids how some gaps in our lives are now being filled in good ways through conversation, togetherness and ingenuity.

Spending so much time at home with the kids these past months means separation anxiety is an issue for many parents when they do have to leave them at school or daycare. The New York Times recently featured our own Greg Clapp from Milwaukee Dads Group and Sean Leacy from the Puget Sound Dads Group talking about how they cope with this issue.

Get your Halloween dad jokes here

Join Movember Dads for men''s health

Once again, City Dads Group is supporting Movember, a global campaign focused on men''s health issues, such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer and depression. We are forming a team of fathers with our friends at Dad 2.0, Life of Dad, and The National At-Home Dad Network to raise money and awareness for the cause. You can join us by signing up through the link below and

• growing the sexiest mustache you can muster to serve as a living "awareness ribbon,"
• committing to a daily exercise plan, or
• doing whatever you want to support the cause!

Fatherhood film festival online

The annual Fatherhood Image Film Festival (FIFF) examines how visuals in movies and the media portray dads and affect people's perception of paternal parenthood. Assisting this year will be three City Dads Group members who will participate on a panel about how fathers are represented in the media:

The free panel, scheduled for 4 p.m. Eastern time, Sunday, Oct. 25, will be broadcast via Facebook at The Real Dads Network page.
The panel, which will take some questions from viewers, will feature:

• Matt Schneider - co-founder of City Dads Group and NYC Dads Group
• David Bandison - an NYC Dads Group member who is a business coach, speaker, and author of Fatherhood is Leadership
• James Lopez - a co-organizer of NYC Dads Group and founder of #FatherhoodIsLit
• Derek Phillips -- founder and executive director of the Real Dads Network, an organization committed to strengthening the institution of the family by promoting positive images of fatherhood in the media.

Parents.com features 2 City Dads

Parents.com recently featured two of our Florida-based City Dads Group members in an article interviewing Latino fathers on why dads need a support community.

Flor Mercado of our Orlando Dads Group and Ozzy Rosenberg (shown above with his family) of our Miami Dad Group spoke about the challenges modern fathers face and the importance of other fathers helping them through the hard times, such as divorce and financial difficulties.

Issues for the modern father

Our City Dads Group blog contributors have recently tackled some current and hot topics that you may also be grappling with:

• "Dad, Should I Kneel During the National Anthem?" A freshman football player wonders whether he should make a statement when the season starts, and his father asks him some pertinent questions to help him make up his mind.
• Should Children Participate in a Protest March? James Lopez of our NYC Dads Group writes about his experience with his 13-year-old son at a Black Lives Matters march, and offers tips to others.
• Using Positive Examples to Teach Masculinity at Home These five common traits of what healthy manliness" looks like can help your son grow into the man you will be proud of.

"Father's Day Taken," the latest pro-fatherhood initiative by our longtime partner Dove Men+Care, remembers the thousands of black dads who have lost their lives due to racism and violence, and the families they left behind. DM+C established the Father''s Day Taken Fund to invest $1 million to support these families.

The Father''s Day Taken effort is raising money through a GoFundMe page. It is asking people to join by donating at least $5 - the cost of a Father's Day card. All donations will benefit the fund.

Energy boost for busy fathers at a discount

Don''t let precious parenting time slip away

Coronavirus, or COVID-19, is radically changing the parenting game. Schools, daycares, offices, sports arenas and more are being closed to avoid large crowds where the virus could rapidly spread. Supermarket shelves are emptying. What should we do?

First and foremost - don''t panic

The good news is the vast majority of people infected by coronavirus only experience mild symptoms and very few cases appear to involve children under age 10. However, 4,300 deaths have occurred worldwide to date, and people of all ages and in all health conditions are at risk.

Please take proper precautions, maintain social distance, and heed government warnings and quarantines, if not for yourself than for the sake of your kids and someone else''s kids. 

If you are home with your children for the duration of this crisis, make the most of this time together.

Play. Build pillow forts. Learn to braid your daughter''s hair from a YouTube video. Share jokes. Show off your photo collection. Educate them on your family''s history and your job. Tell them you love them. Often.

Here''s some helpful links for you during these times: 

• How to discuss coronavirus with children. UNICEF offers tips for "an open, supportive discussion with your children (that) can help them understand, cope and even make a positive contribution for others."
• Working from home with children in tow. A full-time work-at-home father offers you tips on being a success at both your jobs.
• Stop arguments with your older child with this tip. Living in such close quarters means more chances of friction with your teen or tween. Here''s how to halt the bickering.
• Cooking a lesson for kids in play, patience, responsibility. Having your child help with the family meal offers a lifetime of memories, skills.

City Dads success at DC Dad 2.0

Another Dad 2.0 Summit has concluded and our members who attended learned much about being a modern working dad, the "fatherhood influence" in marketing, the need to protect our children from online predators, and more.

We also held a successful on-site member meetup (pictured above) that we broadcast live on Facebook (pictured below) to our chapter organizers across North America. We gave them tips on engaging and growing their groups along with updates on projects and upcoming events we are involved, including Fathers Eve in June and HomeDadCon in October.

Guinness me some St. Pat''s Day dad jokes 

Your kids will be Dublin over in hysterics when you read them our latest collection of holiday-themed dad jokes just for St. Patrick''s Day. And yes, that dog in the picture is an Irish sitter.

Dad/child road trip to Dayton

A few fathers from our Cincinnati Dads Group and Columbus Dads Group got together outside of their respective cities during February break to let their children explore the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Dayton, Ohio. How cool is that? 

City Dads star in "How To" video series

Staying home all day, every day, with the kids is new for many fathers during the COVID-19 crisis. To help, City Dads Group is working with longtime partner Dove Men+Care to create a series of "how to" videos for the company's new "Dads Care" campaign.

The short videos, created by fathers for fathers, cover topics relevant to the times. Initial video titles include "How to Keep Your Kids Occupied While Working from Home," "How to Give a Kid a Haircut (and Not Mess It Up)," and "How to Help Kids Overcome Fear."

New videos, like the one above featuring Aaron Sheldon of our Columbus Dads Group in Ohio, and his son, will appear weekly through July.

These guys may be onto something

Here''s some helpful words from our City Dads Group blog about a few of the issues you may be dealing with during the COVID-19 shut-in:

• Family Routines Essential During This ''Unscheduled'' Time Columnist Vincent O''Keefe writes about finding your groove and re-evaluating what is important in your home life while hunkered down with family.
• Video Games Bond Fathers, Sons Through the Generations Shannon Carpenter of our Kansas City Dads Group hilariously shares a tale about his many days conquering a digital world with one of his children. just like he once did with his father.
• Saying ''I''m Sorry'' Tells Your Kids You Promise to Do Better Many of us are running short on patience. Brandon Billinger of the Kansas City Dads Group advises you on how to make it better.

Talking beers ... and fatherhood

Greg Washington, left, is founder of our Madison Dads Group in Wisconsin and the Daddy Porter beer group on Facebook. The group normally has a weekly "Brothers in Booze" broadcast featuring interviews and beer tastings, but with people housebound these past two months, Greg has expanded the schedule and widened the scope of interviewees, including this one with City Dads Group co-founder Matt Schneider.

Keep it together when life keeps you apart

We hope this finds you and your family safe, healthy and happy. These are trying times, but remember: We really are all in this together.

Our work of getting fathers together to share stories, experiences and friendships with one another is still going on, only the locations have changed. Rather than meetings on playgrounds or in taprooms, our dads have been setting up virtual coffees and happy hours online. These sessions still allow our members to do what they do best: talk about the drudgery, the excitement, the pains and the joys of parenthood.

We encourage you to check the Meetup or Facebook page of your local City Dads Group for information about when these are talking place. Please join us when and where you can so you see that you are not alone.

Fatherly advice for the times

Here''s some helpful words from our City Dads Group blog about some of the issues you may be dealing with during the COVID-19 shut-in:

• Remote Work Lets You Get Job Done on Your Own Terms: Work-at-home father and Orlando Dads Group co-organizer Marlon Gutierrez on how to make a smooth and successful transition from corporate office to home office.
• Parental Advice to Get You Through the Unemployment Blues: Brandon Billinger of our Kansas City Dads Group has been laid off three times in his career. Each time he bounced back.
• Homeschooling Tips, Advice from Father Who Has Done it Before NYC Dads Group member Jason Greene offers tips and suggestions from his days of homeschooling his own children.
• Coping Strategies to Help Families Hit the Brakes Being confined together is probably only adding to the stress, anxiety and worries of these uncertain times. Learn to practice mental distancing.
• Child''s Birthday Party Plans Ruined by COVID-19? Not on Your Watch Great ideas for making your child''s celebration special when no one can come over. (Big plus - no goodie bags!)

L.A. Dad working on ventilator project

Los Angeles Dads Group co-organizer Chris Jung is leading a team of engineers creating an emergency ventilator that can be reproduced using 3D printing technology. The project is an attempt to update and mass produce a product used by the U.S. Army in the 1960s.

Helping isolated pediatric patients

NYC Dads Group (and City Dads Group) co-founder Matt Schneider and his family spent a recent weekend putting together activity kits for Project Sunshine. The kits help pediatric hospital patients, many of whom are isolated or allowed very few visitors because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Although they made the kits in their Manhattan home, their work went to help patients at Lurie Children''s Hospital of Chicago.

At-home dad conference seeks speakers

The National At-Home Dad Network is accepting proposals for presentations, breakout sessions, roundtables and panel discussions for HomeDadCon 2020 (aka, the 25th Annual At-Home Dads Convention), slated for Oct. 8-10 in Cincinnati.

If you are interested in speaking or have an idea for a speaker or topic, click the button below. For more info on the conference or to buy a ticket, visit HomeDadCon.org.