"Parenting isn't a tea and cake party"

A father takes three months off work to be a stay-at-home parent and soon discovers it's not exactly the cushy life he'd thought it was. Reasonably progressive by the Telegraph's standards, perhaps. But the fact that he then slinks off back to work, happily leaving what he readily admits is "the hardest job in the world" to his wife, somewhat undermines that progressive message. If I was her, I'm not sure his new-found respect and appreciation for her or the fact that he's learned his lesson would be much of a consolation.

The article also irritated me for the following observation: "Men don't like talking to other men when they no longer feel like men. And the harsh truth is that being a stay-at-home father is a testosterone-free existence". It's not that that first statement isn't true - more that it probably still is, and depressingly so. Personally speaking, I don't understand why taking direct responsibility for the care of your own children should be considered emasculating. Surely it's something you both sign up for when you decide to have kids, whether you work full-time or not.

(Thanks to Rea for the link.)