I feel incredibly privileged to be the adopted dad to 5 beautiful kids aged 8 to 21.  Parenting is simultaneously the single greatest challenge and the single greatest joy in my life.  It’s a constant conundrum trying to balance the desire to be ‘fun dad’ and also serve their long-term needs, which sometimes means doing ‘un-fun’ stuff.  Balancing the need to be present and available at work and also present and available as a dad, is tricky too.  And then there’s the reflection part: ‘I should have handled that better’ or ‘I wish I had done X not Y’.  But I’ve grown to accept that success isn’t about being the ‘perfect’ dad.  It about being the ‘have a go’ dad, the ‘show-up’ dad, the ’shut-up and listen’ dad.  I don’t have words to describe the sense of pride and love I have for my kids. I just know that being their dad is the most precious thing in my life, and the most meaningful thing I will ever do.  

Michael, NSW – Proud Dad of 5