Stay-at-Home Dad

The decision to use a stay-at-home dad arrangement is most commonly due to economic reasons. There has been a disappearance of the types of white-collar jobs that men have traditionally filled. Many middle-aged men have become essentially unemployable, thereby causing a role reversal for economic reasons.

What's more:

[M]any men struggle to find acceptance within the role of stay-at-home dad despite the many gains that have been made. Many worry about losing business skills and their "professional place in line". There is a common misconception that stay-at-home dads cannot get a job and therefore must rewrite the typical family roles...

Comforting thoughts (from wikipedia). And, with the burgeoning number of stay-at-home dads, a reason why there are so many "stay-at-home dad" blogs out there. Everything from fathers chronicling each loose tooth, to sharing resources (anyone for The Daddy Shift: How Stay-at-Home Dads, Breadwinning Moms, and Shared Parenting Are Transforming the American Family?), to defending their status.

Because I'm unemployed, at home, and a dad, I sampled some of these Mr. Mom blogs:

• Being Michael's Daddy - A Spartan site, employing the same template I'm using for "The Reconstructed Man." I would say it's as unadorned ("sparing" or "focused" if you're being kind) as my PB, but this blogger (Michael's daddy) includes photos, videos, and audio files which help to vivify and personalize the site. The posts can get a little long but I liked the authentic, heartfelt approach (running the gamut from Michael's illness to the blogger's interest in "Scooby Doo" sound effects). Note: This blog recently moved to a new site. Although the design is significantly different/richer, I leave it to the reader to determine what was gained by the move.
• Memoirs of a Stay at Home Dad - A robust site with a host of sidebar features (including links to other "stay-at-home dad" blogs). Plenty to see and do here (photos from the Disney World trip, Cool Video!, Great Book!) but -- rolling out another Greek analogy -- the site came across as a Trojan horse. The content struck me as laborious: the blogger seems to recount every minute in his daughter's day (good for posterity but numbing for the reader). Ultimately, it seems like little more than filler when you notice the blogger's plugs for "Stay At Home Dads Moneymakers" and "Amazing New Opportunity!!!" With each shrill shill, the blogger's credibility goes out the door.
• At Home Father - Not the slickest site but certainly a functional and engaging one. This blogger, Brian Berliner, has a lively voice and a sense of humor (hey, he was even featured in a TV news story on, you guessed it, stay-at-home dads). Although there's a fair amount of "baby talk"/surviving the first 90 days (don't want to relive my daughter's infancy, thank you very much), I liked the tone. Unlike the preceding blogs, this is a blog I'd keep reading.

Which is not to disparage the other blogs. Every blogger has an agenda. A survey of these sites helped make that clear. (By the same token, every reader has his/her preferences.) The review process raised a slew of questions: "How much content is enough/too much? How many visuals and sidebar items are enough/too much? What's too boring? What's too busy?" No easy answers, but all options and ideas for me to consider in my own blogs.