Potty training from birth and other random parenting traditions
A roundup of the hilarious parenting content from the week, guaranteed to make you smile, if not laugh out loud. Plus the odd helpful tips.
Happy Saturday Dads!
At For Dads HQ, we’ve been sharing stories of the most unreasonable things our toddlers have requested recently.
From trying to re-peel a banana to asking to touch the sun, our children have had us stumped with some pretty out-there demands recently.
This dad summed it up pretty well with this particularly rough week:
We can’t get over this boy’s poor sister and her shifty eyes.
Coming up this week…
The strangest traditions still practiced by new parents around the globe
How to save money with kids
Is Dwayne Johnson rocking a Dad bod?
As always, if you enjoyed this week’s edition and think you might know someone else who would, please do share. We know how tough being a parent can be, and sometimes you just need a moment to laugh at some of the craziness.
Thanks for reading, and enjoy that beer once it finally comes.
Fred @
(a fellow dad of 2)
As seen on Insta
The links below will take you to the relevant platform and you do not need an account to watch the videos; they are just a little light relief to make you smile on a Saturday morning.
These kids have been grooving from birth
They do say three’s a crowd
Our winner of 2023’s scariest halloween outfit
It’s all in the numbers
This week our research has unearthed a host of niche traditions kept aside specifically for lucky new parents across the globe.
We’re certain that most of you would have come across the nutritional practice of eating the placenta after birth.
Whilst, to some, this will sound like a Bushtucker Trial reserved for the cast of ‘I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here’, for others it holds the cure to postpartum depression and we can assure you it is by no means the strangest tradition we have uncovered.
Parents in Greece still believe that spitting on their baby three times will ward off evil spirits
Nordic parents happily put their children to sleep in prams outside in subzero temperatures
Brave Chinese families employ a ‘no nappy’ technique, effectively potty-training their child from 2 weeks old
Whilst illegal as of (only) 2010, some families in India still engage in ‘baby tossing’, a religious ritual which involves dropping young babies from a 30ft height into a hammock-like sheet to bring good luck and a long life
It seems that on the one hand you have parents going to extreme lengths to ensure health and happiness and on the other you have parents actively testing the durability of their kids.
They will thank you
Kids are expensive, right? Well, it might be worth doing some research into the possible savings you could be making.
Here’s a few things that could make your (and your partner’s) life meaningfully cheaper.
Child Benefit, what’s the deal?
For anyone earning less than £50,000 per year, you are eligible to claim for the full benefit entitlement on registering the birth of your child. Only one parent may claim.
The weekly child benefit equates to £24 for your first (or only) child, and £15.90 for any additional children.
If your annual salary exceeds £50,000, then you should still take the time to understand whether you can claim for a % of the benefit.
And for anyone fortunate enough to be in the position of disqualifying for the benefit, you should probably still complete the Child Benefit form; it’ll make a meaningful impact to your state pension!
Find out more here.
Free nappies, er, yes please!
Download the Pampers Club app here and get a free pack of Pampers Baby-Dry for every 10 packs you buy. We calculate that to be about once-a-week in our household!
Tax-free childcare
The chances are that you and your partner are eligible to receive up to £500 every 3 months per child to help with the cost of childcare.
If your child is under 11 years old, you (or your partner) are currently working, you earn more than the average Living Wage and under £100K a year, you are likely to be eligible.
Find out more here.
Free prescriptions for the baby’s mother
Maternity Exemption Certificates apply for your partner during pregnancy and the subsequent 12 months after childbirth.
They entitle your partner to free NHS prescriptions, including dental treatment, so are worth remembering.
Find out more here.
And for those savvy shoppers out there, don’t miss out on these great parenting offers.
Dad hack of the week
It may look unorthodox but for anyone familiar with the task of holding on to your slippery salmon of a baby in the bath, you’ve got to respect the ingenuity of this.
How the stars do it
Documenting a recent swimming lesson with his daughter, The Rock opened up on his toddler’s misconception of what constitutes a Dad bod.
"I took my shirt off and she said, “Daddy I like your brown boobies.. “
Thank you baby, but daddy has pecs, not boobies.”
That’s it lads, repeat after me: “Daddy has pecs, not boobies!”
Upcoming dates that it might be worth having up your sleeve:
Bonfire night | Sunday 5th November; brush up on toddler-safe activities here
World Science Day | Thursday 10th November; check with nursery/school now to prevent working on a slap-dash Volcano project late Wednesday evening
Remembrance Day | Friday 11th November; head down to your local shop to get your poppies for the family now
That’s it for this week folks.
Thanks again for reading, as always we leave you with one HILARIOUS joke to share with the family.
What did the grape do when he got stepped on?
He let out a little wine.
source: thedad.com
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