Hi, I'm Andrew, and I'm the guy responsible for one son, one daughter and MadDadSkillz.com
We are a family of two kids and two full time working parents and this is a record of our attempts to achieve work/life balance or, as the kids call it, fun!
On our website you will find:
MANternity Musings: A collection of comical stories that capture the sheer randomness of modern day parenting.
MADventures: Reviews, recommendations and guides from our travels and adventures as a family.
Monthly Magnificent Books: An ongoing series of Children's Book reviews celebrating the most inspirational and thought provoking stories I have encountered.
Shared Parental Leave + : An area for my advocacy pieces regarding Shared Parental Leave and other equality policies.
How did MadDadSkillz become a thing?
MadDadSkillz began when I took 100 days of Shared Parental Leave in 2016.
I was thrust from the life of a working dad yearning to be at home loving his kids, to a loving dad yearning to be...well no one actually yearns to be back at work, do they?
My son was born in 2012 and, due to work commitments, I was out of the country for 12 of his first 18 months. After that I endured a "weekend commute" lifestyle until he was 2. This is not the type of parent I wanted to be.
When my daughter was born in 2016, I had the opportunity to take time off as Shared Parental Leave and fully immerse myself in being a father. My wife covered the first 9 months, got her weened, then skipped out the door back to work and I took over the final 3 months.
It was an exceptional time which allowed me great insights into who my children were, deeper appreciation of my relationship with my wife and what she had done during my son's early years, and the odd experience with how the washing machine and oven work.
Can I follow you on Social Media?
Why how very kind of you to ask! Of course you can.
You can interact directly with me on Twitter and Facebook along with a chance to read the many links and articles I share that amuse me.
Andrew and Laura, Love your website, so funny and amusing, never dull moment. When do you sleep?? The story of the “heinous crime in the nursery” with naughty Damien was so funny. Keep up the good work. Need to see you all sometime. Lots of Love and hugs xxx
The kids are a pretty constant supply of comedic material!
Yes, would be lovely to see you guys again. I’ll facebook you with our travel plans.