Teaching your children how to ride a bike, to swim, and especially to choose between the right and wrong path in life is part of this world of fatherhood. Children mirror their parents, and those who want to follow their father's example have a present father that they love, cherish, and care for unconditionally. Those who had a present father know well the wonderful memories that this experience brings to their lives. Those who didn't have one know what a father means and about missing all the moments they never lived. All this can motivate the idealization of the perfect way of being a father.

Fatherhood can be frightening at times. Men who are not yet ready to be fathers may feel shocked upon learning of their partner's pregnancy. In these cases, the process of becoming a father can be a bit longer and more complex. Acceptance has to be part of the moment, together with the ongoing pregnancy. This does not always happen easily and naturally. For some men, it is necessary to follow the pregnancy, watch the belly grow and, even so, only become fathers when the baby is born.

Just as for mothers, the realization that a new life is coming may not hit even with a positive test. Things only start to take shape from the first ultrasound. For some people, fatherhood may start right there along with the beat of the baby's little heart. That’s why it is so important for the man to accompany the woman to all the ultrasound exams, and why not, to all prenatal appointments as well.

It is also important that the father gets involved in the whole process of preparing for the baby's arrival. Nesting is part of the female nature, but dad can and should get involved too. He might start by setting up the room or corner where the baby will stay. The process of choosing the colors and even painting the room can be left to the dads, why not? Giving dad his space is even more motivation for the woman to help him be a present father for his baby.

What mom doesn’t dream of having a husband who understands her from pregnancy through to the hardest moments in case the children are ill? Being part of it and helping is dad’s mission. Let's say it's for better or worse, a lifetime relationship in good moments and also in the worst! In fact, it is in the difficult and sad moments related to the children’s health that we truly get to know the father who stands by the mother's side. A father who’s involved makes all the difference.

Being a father is not always as easy as it may seem, because besides providing, the father must provide security and comfort for his children. The father figure is like a hero to those little ones. The dad is the Superman of the household in every way. Fathers are role models for their children; the type of father you show yourself to be will shape the kind of father your child will be in the future.

Photos: Tobias Fidelis, Caitlin Regan