You can try any one of the following.

I married well and retired early.
I took a cue from horse racing and put myself out to stud with the right woman.
I retired early and now just can't bring myself to go back to work because I'm having so much fun staying home with the kids.

(With the right crowd you can also try)
I'm gainfully unemployed now that I care who raises my kids.
I'm writing a book about how dad's that work too much raise kids who have a higher rate of teen pregnancy and drug/alcohol abuse. (when they say "REALLY?!?" say..) "Not really, I just stay home with the kids because I want to."
I work on Home Front Security and I'm really not at liberty to discuss my job. (When they ask "Don't you mean HomeLAND Security?" say, "No." and just shake your head like they ought to know better.

And my personal favorite....
I work in the R & D department for a sexual fantasies board game company. (After that, everyone else's job just kinda sucks by comparison.) Plus you can have hours of fun stringing them along about your research materials, your "assistant" etc. When you're bored with playing with them, tell them what you really do and they'll forget it in five seconds and go right back to the "dream job" you just BS-ed them with. They'll think you're a great guy and won't even care what you do after that. Or if they think it's cool, they'll tell you privately. Either way, you're in!

Enjoy!!!

--Alby

Living the dream & making it look difficult.

I get down to the local pub from time to time to play poker. All the guys there know what I do "for a living", and the general consesus is that it's a way cool job. Very hip. Very cutting edge. Never would have dreamed of the day when changing diapers would be cool...

oh, and go RED SOX!

-daddy x

I've felt the annoying tingle of the not-intended snub already. My parents were in town to meet their 10 week old granddaughter for the first time last weekend and graciously relieved us for a day so we could get out and do some shopping and have a nice baby-free dinner together. Well, the little peanut needed a diaper change and my dad proclaims that "I'm not changing diapers; that's a woman's work!"

I'm sure a lot of you guys know how that feels. I have been armored against this type of behavior from coworkers and the general public since their opinion doesn't make any difference to me, but I have to say it stung a bit when I heard it from my dad. I'm sure he didn't intend it that way, but it was enough to pop up in my head a few times later in the day and irritate me.

Sorry. Had to share that with people who understand.

Rich C. : Novice baby wrangler and cat herder.
http://one-sahd-dude.blogspot.com/
http://good-eats-fan.blogspot.com/

A very wise woman I know once told me that my father cannot give me what he does not have. In my case, understanding. My father is 80 years old to my 41. We grew up in different times. He fought in WWII and I now share my life with fellow at home dads on the WWW. When he was young, men worked and women stayed home and took care of the kids. Heck, my mom did the same until I, the youngest, got my driver's license. So he knows only what he has experienced firsthand.

Just as you and I have our own ideas about what being a good father means to us, so too, do both of our fathers. Just because your father (and mine too) does not understand why you or I would do this or worse yet, admit to liking it, you cannot understand why he isn't proud of you for doing this for your family. He cannot give you understanding he does not possess. Sorry it could not have been different for both of us.

Just know that while he may not brag to his buddies about your "career," chances are he admires the heck out of you and just doesn't know how to say it. My father finally admitted he could never have pulled it off with me and my sister and money had nothing to do with it. He simply did not know how to care for young children. You have done what every father hopes for for his son. You have taken what he gave you and grown beyond his teaching. You should be proud of yourself for that, if nothing else.

The only thing he can do for you is to ask you for your forgiveness for his lack of understanding. Once you accept that that is all he has left to give you, you can forgive him for his self-imposed limitations and get on with the job that is raising your kids. Teach them what it means to be a father and hope that they too will move beyond your teachings and do what is best for their families when the time comes.

You are the man your father could not be and you must be for your children. Stay humble and stay strong. Best of luck. --Alby

Making it look difficult. Living the dream.