Celebrating Dads: Great Father’s Day Recipes

Today I’m celebrating Dads on Boulder Locavore. In preparation for Father’s Day next weekend I have some special things to share; MY favorite Dad, recipes from fantastic male bloggers I admire (that would be great for Father’s Day) and a giveaway I think any Dad would love!

Choosing to marry someone is truly a leap of faith. In the early, moony phase of a relationship it seems impossible that you as a couple could ever disagree, stand on different sides of an issue or that everything would not be perfect; after all your prospective mate seems pretty darn perfect at that stage (as do you to them).

It’s not until you enter a new phase or situation that you learn what they are made of and certainly there is no bigger test than adding children to your family. Also it’s rare in my experience that people ever get down to brass tack discussions around things like how they want their children raised religiously, their views on discipline, what their priorities are for a child’s focus when planning their family; generally parents don’t realize those topics of discussion until they are in the heat of the moment.

In the case of my husband and me, we knew pretty quickly after starting to date that we wanted to have children, perhaps ever before we knew we wanted to get married. It was not until we became parents that I stepped back to realize having kids is only the tip of the iceberg.

There are views on discipline, spirituality, education and behavior that generally only surface in the moment as parents weave their way through the unknown frontier of child-rearing. I have friends who have confided the discord with their spouse on key decision-making with raising their children which I’ve found wrenching to imagine. Tug-of-war dynamics with each spouse on the opposite end of a fundamental about which they each feel passionately, seemingly unable to find a middle ground.

As with all other couples I grew to know a completely new aspect of my husband as we’ve raised our children. There is not a day that passes I do not feel the good fortune of him as a partner and father for our two kids. He is patient and kind, teaches them compassion and understanding. He demonstrates appreciation for people from all walks of life and has taught them about bands from the 80’s I’ve happily left in my past. They’ve enjoyed the great outdoors under his knowledgeable watch and how to be critical and curious thinkers, and value education of all forms.

Where I managed the elementary school parties and weekly classroom volunteering, he’s happily taken the baton when Proof Geometry homework needs support, staying up nightly with our daughter to ensure she’s confident and capable in her learning. He’s chaperoned outdoor education field trips, served on school Boards, been a timer at more swim meets than I could count despite commuting to work an hour away; our children are a priority for him and it’s always apparent.

My dear husband has never complained once about being exhausted when staying up during Finals week into the middle of the night or when untested parenting waters have left us both with no reference points to guide our decisions. He’s a big picture thinker and doesn’t sweat the small stuff.

Our children have learned boys and girls can do anything regardless of gender; cook, build things, do robotics, extend themselves generously toward important causes due to his role modeling. He bestows core values of integrity, generosity, honesty, healthy commitment to working out issues and teaching our children to be good human beings with bright inquisitive minds, a good sense of humor and fun, and thirst for travel.

We have been fortunate to be finely tuned in our unity over approaches to enforcing consequences, offering challenges, how to guide and nuture our children’s spirits, and how to prioritize and spend our family time together, valuing that above all else. When we married, barefoot on a beach in Fiji having eloped and chosen a native ceremony, I knew our life together would be rich with adventure. But I never knew he’d turn out to be the best Dad ever. Lucky me.

Cyberspace is burgeoning with fantastic food blogging talent however the scale tilts toward the majority being women. It seems appropriate today to share some of my favorite male talent. Each of these bloggers creates fantastic dishes and/or cocktails. Their food has integrity and their photography is art to behold. I hope you’ll find some new favorite blogs in this list! I selected some of their dishes that are perfect  for Father’s Day.

Epic Meatloaf Stuffed with Mashed Potatoes {Real Food By Dad}

Grilled Skirt Steak with All Purpose Steak Rub and Chimichurri Sauce {Eat the Love}

Chocolate Stout Oat Cake {Chasing Delicious} NOTE:  this is not gluten-free!

Grilled Tri-Tip with Green Garlic Salsa Verde {Kitchen Konfidence}

Pork Tostadas with Slaw, Radishes, Cilantro and Salsa Verde {Verses From My Kitchen}

Pad Thai {Homecooked Kitchen Blog – Donal Skehan}  with video 

Citrus Margarita with Lemon, Lime and Ginger Rim {A Thought for Food}

25 Recipes for the Grill {Closet Cooking}

Triple Walnut Muffins {Souvlaki For the Soul}