Parenting Advice: What Moms Should Learn From Dads

Modern men are increasingly engaged--and relaxed--parents. Moms ought to take notes

Illustration by Gerard Dubois for Time

My mother used to tell my father that he was a very good mother. This was her way of praising his attendance at every concert and game, his patience and care. In those days, "good mother" was the highest domestic achievement; to have called him a good father, given how low the bar was set, wouldn't have done him justice.

But that was long, long ago. Now fathers sing to their babies in utero, come to birthing class, coach mom through delivery (as opposed to the days of the hospital stork clubs, where fathers smoked and paced while mothers delivered their...

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