Fatherhood

In memoriam: Tracy Airrion Pruitt

— April 14, 2024 — There are some people who feel permanent. You just can’t imagine your world without them. They are fixtures, mooring posts of love and encouragement. A rock. Tracy Airrion Pruitt was one of those people. He was my fraternity brother, he was family. When we first met in college 30 years ago,...

In memoriam: Tracy Airrion PruittJohnathon E. Briggs

Pierced Ears Latest Sign Daughter Forging Own Life Path

— October 30, 2023 — Announced by the clatter of a vintage typewriter, a text message from my wife illuminated my phone. The message contained photographic proof of a mission accomplished: our daughter’s ears were now pierced. In the photo, she stood in profile, her hair pulled back, a tiny earring adorning her left lobe. A...

Pierced Ears Latest Sign Daughter Forging Own Life PathJohnathon E. Briggs

Take a Moment for Yourself to be Your Best Self

— September 3, 2023 — The house had been quiet for half an hour, the air so still I could hear the high-pitched motor of the condensate pump in the downstairs utility closet humming through the air vents upstairs. The only hint of life came from the occasional swoosh of traffic out on the street....

Take a Moment for Yourself to be Your Best SelfJohnathon E. Briggs

Swim Lessons Teach Daughter, Dad to Navigate ‘Big Blue World’

— August 7, 2023 — Clad in a hot pink swim cap and matching goggles, my daughter waded into Lane Six of the pool. She grabbed a barbell-shaped floaty and pushed off. With assistance from an instructor, she attempted to flutter kick with her body extended like a mermaid. Her legs flailed about, splashing water all over her...

Swim Lessons Teach Daughter, Dad to Navigate ‘Big Blue World’Johnathon E. Briggs

Honoring My Father’s Wishes for a Beautiful Beginning

— July 30, 2023 — I stepped into my father’s hospital room knowing it would be the last time I’d see him alive. Thin and frail at 92, he was hospitalized eight days earlier with pneumonia and a collapsed lung. These ailments were the last things his battered body needed. For more than a decade, it...

Honoring My Father’s Wishes for a Beautiful BeginningJohnathon E. Briggs

Is AI-Generated Art Biased Against Fathers of Color?

— April 1, 2023 — My journey into the world of AI-generated art began two weeks before Thanksgiving. I sat down in front of my computer to experiment with Midjourney, an artificial intelligence program that creates images from text descriptions. I entered the command “/imagine” and a message from the Midjourney bot appeared: “There are...

Is AI-Generated Art Biased Against Fathers of Color?Johnathon E. Briggs

Daughter’s Triumph Overshadows Neighbor’s Nasty-Gram

— December 3, 2022 — It’s undeniably true that hell is other people. I was upstairs working from our home office on Tuesday, November 29 when I heard my wife open the front door. The familiar squeak and slam of our metal mailbox signaled she’d stepped out on the front porch to check the mail. Moments...

Daughter’s Triumph Overshadows Neighbor’s Nasty-GramJohnathon E. Briggs

On Hiatus: Pursuing a New Dream in 2022

— December 31, 2021—   I launched this blog four and half years ago on Father’s Day. At the time, my daughter was two months shy of her third birthday and I was finding my way as a father. Since then Fatherhood@Forty has chronicled my journey as a husband, ausome dad, and wingtip shoe enthusiast; connected me to a...

On Hiatus: Pursuing a New Dream in 2022Johnathon E. Briggs

Vitiligo After COVID-19 Vaccination: Is My Daughter an Early Case?

— December 27, 2021 — The vaccine clinic for kids ages 5-11 organized by our local school district was a hot mess. Parents were required to confirm an appointment time, but it did nothing but guarantee a spot in a long, snaking line behind scores of other families that inched along the hallways of a junior...

Vitiligo After COVID-19 Vaccination: Is My Daughter an Early Case?Johnathon E. Briggs

A Family Portrait 46 Years In Making

— November 15, 2021 — Seated at a table this past spring in the courtyard of a nursing home, I squeezed into the frame of my iPhone camera and snapped a selfie with my parents. In this fifth decade of my life, it’s the only photo I have of the three of us together. It’s...

A Family Portrait 46 Years In MakingJohnathon E. Briggs

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About

Few may know this, but twice as many dads of newborns today are now in the 40-plus age group, compared to the 1970s. Six weeks before my 40th birthday, I became a first-time father, hence the title of this blog.

This life-changing moment made me think about my own dad, who became a father at 43. As my parenthood journey unfolded, I noticed that most of my friends had become parents earlier in life yet, here I was, changing diapers and battling sleep deprivation at (nearly) 40. I told my wife, “Parenting is definitely a young man’s game.” But is it really?

Where most of my friends were preparing for their children’s middle and high school graduations, I was mastering the art of the swaddle, perfecting the one-hand baby wipe, and learning to decipher my daughter’s gurgles and whimpers. It occurred to me that I had so much more to offer my daughter at the sure-footed age of 40 than I did at, say, 28, when I was still coming into my own.

Fatherhood@Forty: Memoirs of a Gen X Suburban Dad™ is a creative outlet to share my experiences and connect with other (relatively) late-in-life dads.

Here are a few factoids about me, Johnathon Briggs, the editor behind this blog:

  • I’m a former journalist (Los Angeles Times, The Baltimore Sun, Chicago Tribune).
  • I love exploring Chicago and the Midwest with my family.
  • I remain on a constant quest to stay fit.
  • I support charities that fight HIV, uplift families affected by incarceration, and ensure African American boys graduate from college.
  • I’m a comic book geek (mostly Marvel, but a bit of DC and Image Comics).
  • I’m a child of the ‘80s, so please expect occasional references to the Golden Age of Hip-Hop.

As a reporter for daily newspapers, I had the opportunity to interview fascinating people and to test out great products and brands for my readers. I hope to do the same for you as I blog about the moments that make up this adventure called fatherhood.

Feel free to tweet (@fatherhoodforty) or email ([email protected]) me if you’d like to collaborate or have ideas for a blog post.

Father on,

P.S. Check out The Art of Conversation podcast interview I did with Art Eddy from Life of Dad.

 


Disclaimer: Fatherhood@Forty may contain affiliate marketing links, which may result in commission on sales of products or services I write about. My editorial content is not influenced by advertisers or affiliate partnerships. This disclosure is provided in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR § 255.5: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

In memoriam: Tracy Airrion Pruitt

Pierced Ears Latest Sign Daughter Forging Own Life Path

Take a Moment for Yourself to be Your Best Self

Swim Lessons Teach Daughter, Dad to Navigate ‘Big Blue World’

Honoring My Father’s Wishes for a Beautiful Beginning

Is AI-Generated Art Biased Against Fathers of Color?

Resistant Eater Makes Meals a Challenge

Daughter’s Triumph Overshadows Neighbor’s Nasty-Gram

On Hiatus: Pursuing a New Dream in 2022

Vitiligo After COVID-19 Vaccination: Is My Daughter an Early Case?

View More

About

Few may know this, but twice as many dads of newborns today are now in the 40-plus age group, compared to the 1970s. Six weeks before my 40th birthday, I became a first-time father, hence the title of this blog.

This life-changing moment made me think about my own dad, who became a father at 43. As my parenthood journey unfolded, I noticed that most of my friends had become parents earlier in life yet, here I was, changing diapers and battling sleep deprivation at (nearly) 40. I told my wife, “Parenting is definitely a young man’s game.” But is it really?

Where most of my friends were preparing for their children’s middle and high school graduations, I was mastering the art of the swaddle, perfecting the one-hand baby wipe, and learning to decipher my daughter’s gurgles and whimpers. It occurred to me that I had so much more to offer my daughter at the sure-footed age of 40 than I did at, say, 28, when I was still coming into my own.

Fatherhood@Forty: Memoirs of a Gen X Suburban Dad™ is a creative outlet to share my experiences and connect with other (relatively) late-in-life dads.

Here are a few factoids about me, Johnathon Briggs, the editor behind this blog:

  • I’m a former journalist (Los Angeles Times, The Baltimore Sun, Chicago Tribune).
  • I love exploring Chicago and the Midwest with my family.
  • I remain on a constant quest to stay fit.
  • I support charities that fight HIV, uplift families affected by incarceration, and ensure African American boys graduate from college.
  • I’m a comic book geek (mostly Marvel, but a bit of DC and Image Comics).
  • I’m a child of the ‘80s, so please expect occasional references to the Golden Age of Hip-Hop.

As a reporter for daily newspapers, I had the opportunity to interview fascinating people and to test out great products and brands for my readers. I hope to do the same for you as I blog about the moments that make up this adventure called fatherhood.

Feel free to tweet (@fatherhoodforty) or email ([email protected]) me if you’d like to collaborate or have ideas for a blog post.

Father on,

P.S. Check out The Art of Conversation podcast interview I did with Art Eddy from Life of Dad.

 


Disclaimer: Fatherhood@Forty may contain affiliate marketing links, which may result in commission on sales of products or services I write about. My editorial content is not influenced by advertisers or affiliate partnerships. This disclosure is provided in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR § 255.5: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
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