PureWow Staffers on the Sweetest, Dorkiest Things Our Husbands Do as Dads

Father’s Day might seem like it’s all about ties, mugs and greeting cards with fart jokes on them. But as we get older and sappier, we kinda think it’s also about the dads.

Here at PureWow, we’ve watched our own husbands grow from buffoonish man-children who barely know how to hold a baby to expert swaddlers, Grammy-worthy bedtime singers and good old-fashioned pigskin-throwers who are somehow willing to toss a ball back and forth again…and again…and again.

In celebration of all they do—and the joy with which they do it—here are eight PureWow staffers on their spouses’ best dad moves, all of which (we think) earn them a nomination for father of the year.

“My husband and daughter play ‘the laughing game,’ usually when she's spiraling in a tantrum. The game goes like this: he starts laughing uncontrollably in her face and then she starts, and then they just laugh their way out of a sad moment. It's always unhinged but also super cute.”

— Dara Katz, Executive Editor

“If my son Joey is ever having a tough time at dinner, my husband will play a game where he says he's going to bring over the biggest spoon Joey's ever seen in his life...then he'll reveal a 1/8 teaspoon. Or he'll say he's going to put Joey's food in the smallest bowl ever and he'll bring over a mixing bowl. Joey falls for it every time.”

— Angela Pares, VP Design & Branded Content

“My house is littered with tiny little robots and my kids' drawings turned into tiny toys. My husband Nate got into 3-D printing a little over a year ago, and while it's been practical—he's used it to create a ramp for our Roomba to clean the kitchen and fix our dishwasher handle so it no longer knocks into the silverware drawer—the real joy is seeing the kids light up when they're surprised by their ‘rainbow cloud cat’ brought to life. Even if I have to deal with the clutter.”

— Candace Davison, VP Editorial

“When my kids are sitting at the kitchen eating, my husband will sometimes pretend he's going down an elevator or walking down stairs behind the kitchen counter. They think it's HILARIOUS.”

— Alexia Dellner, Executive Editor, Family

“My son gets hurt a lot (clumsy child!) and my husband will always try to recreate his injuries in the most ridiculous ways. So, if Benny stubs his toe against the door, my husband will walk into the door and pretend to get hurt in the most dramatic recreation of the accident ever. And without fail, it quickly turns Benny's tears into laughter!”

— Heidi Zwick, VP of Finance

“My husband Matt is really good at creating confidence-building situations that turn my son Finn into the ‘cool kid’ amongst his friends. For example, at an end of kindergarten celebration last year, he was the monster/pirate/villain and about 15 kids were all chasing him around a playground to ‘catch’ him. Matt was so winded by the end, while Finn was surrounded by a chorus of friends saying, ‘omg, your dad is so fun!’”

— Rachel Bowie, Senior Director Special Projects and Royals

“We live in a rural area with lots of mosquitos and black flies, and my husband is currently on a mission to bug-proof our evening walk. His latest experiment is fake dragonflies. He could clip them onto the stroller, but instead he clips them onto his hat, proudly strolling down the street and reporting on the status of bugs in the area. Happy to report no bug bites for momma or baby since the attire upgrade!”

— Mary Rogers, Director Audience Development

“Every night, the kids will get under all their covers and my husband will take turns lying on top of one of them pretending to go to sleep. ‘Why is this bed so lumpy?!’ he’ll demand. ‘Since when do pillows giggle?’ ‘The joke,’ as we call it, has been going on for years. I’d have thought the kids would have outgrown it by now, but they still clearly love it. And, as it turns out, I guess I do too.”

— Jillian Quint, Editor in Chief