Dads in the Limelight – Brock Lusch of The SAHDad and The Bread Winning Mama

My wife and I have been married for 10 yrs and will celebrate our 11th this May. My wife’s name is Corie and she is an amazing woman who works very hard at her job in the financial world while also juggling being a great mother and wife. She is the reason I get to do this job of being home with the kids with such awesome support. We have 3 kids however one of them we did not get the chance to meet in person since she died in the womb at 11weeks but we believed she was a girl and so we named her Rose Lynn. Our first born in Hezekiah and is a very intelligent boy with a love for animals and serving others but is stubborn as can be, he was born in February and will turn 5 this year. Our second born is Ruby and she is 2 and is full of attitude and spunk. She is tough and can hold her own against her brother or any other boy who thinks they are going to push her around. But she is also super sweet and loving, with a voice that will melt your heart.

My Anger Monster and keeping it caged!

I was excited when my wife called me while out on a backpacking/camping trip through Red River Gorge and told me that we were pregnant in June of 2012. But I had a good portion of a day to think through a couple battles about this wonderful news. First was the idea of hoping that we go full term after what had happened a few years ago with Rose. The second was when this baby is born life as I know it is going to change. I am no longer going to be able to just take off for a trip like this without having other logistics set in place. So one of the challenges I have had over the years was “ok I have a kid and can they come do outdoors things with me and my wife or is that part of our life over” However we learned fast that kids are resilient and can go in the wilderness with us and it can be enjoyable. Recently though the biggest challenge has been transitioning into being a Full Time Stay at Home Dad which started in April 2017. I had always wanted to be a stay at home parent because I seen the impact of having a parent at home can have on a child because my mom was that parent for me when I was growing up. But even though that was going to happen I was going to be home ALL DAY with these two little humans and would need to be productive with our time. So having teaching moments and fun moments would be weighed out with moments of discipline that would be conducted by me without my wife since she would be the one at work. I started to wonder are my kids going to see me as some mean Monster of a Man because I am the one always bring forth discipline. Well I can say that even though I am in this role as the primary disciplinary the kids love me just as much as they did on day one. They are young and so they are quick to forgive and understand and try to change and they show me so much love which helps me not look so negative on my responsibilities in raising them to listen and obey rules.

BREATHE! A good man who was a sparring partner of mine in a mens boxing group told me one night. If you get upset and don’t take the time to breathe you will find yourself knocked out on the mat. Keep a level head about the frustrations of children. Surround yourself with other dads who you can hang out with and vent frustrations and come back to your home a better man for having taken the time to talk with someone. Also be open and honest with your wife allowing her to see that she may need to help listen and show support for the hard times.

My wife is an amazing, supportive woman who understands what I need as a man and stay at home dad. So we have use Google Calendar to notify each other when we need to get me out of the house. This allows for conversations to take place more fluidly since she is at work and I am at home. Because of this set up I manage to get out and do those outdoors things like cycling, hunting ad just hanging out with the guys that I used to do without kids. She also gets time to get away with her ladies for painting nights, overnights or just the occasional crochet party with the women from church.

It is never as bad as you might think it is  with the kids or life. Hind sight is 20/20 but once you see the solution fix the problem so you can move on. Fathers who might seem like mister tough guy is many times the most lonely guy in the room, but once you give him a chance to speak with someone who really listens they will open up and start a relationship may have never thought possible.

As a man seeking the face of God I have seen how the Almighty God loves his children. I love my children no matter what they do right or wrong and in the end want them to know that I love them. The times that I spend teaching them right from wrong and disciplining them when they do not obey teaches me that I need to keep in mind that my actions have a direct impact on my kids actions.

Cutting the umbilical cord for both of my kids and getting to hold them for the first time.