Ask Dr. Meg: Dad with 5 Girls

A Dad wrote in asking me how he can be sure that he’s giving equal time to his five daughters. Here is my response…

Dear Dad of Five:

The very fact that you are thinking about being a great Dad to your daughters tells me that you already are one! You can certainly give your daughters enough time and attention and you need to remember two very important things.

First, God willing, you will have a couple of decades with each child to spread out your affections and attention. So relax. You can’t give each daughter everything right now. And the good news is that you don’t need to. Second, the life-changing moments that your daughters will experience with you won’t come from special time that you set aside for them. They will come during moments when they are living life next to you. So, simply do that- take one with you at different times when you go about your daily business. And don’t worry about scheduling special time- these are good and your daughters will like alone time with you, but if you relax and let each one know that you enjoy her company, each one will get the best that you have to give her.