Group for First Time and Experienced Fathers?

Hi,

I just became a father 3 months ago. My wife is Taiwanese :slight_smile: and this fatherhood thing is a far far harder than I gave it credit for. Would love to meet other fathers, share stories, talk, share advice, get advice, and generally support each other in camaraderie :bravo:

Are there any father groups in Taipei anyone know of? Where english is also accepted :slight_smile: (I know the kid will speak chinese, but I reckon I’ve got a little more time to continue learning) or anyone interested in getting together starting a fathers group?

Go Team Fathers!

Thanks,
Ekim

Well, my daughter just turned 7 months old. Could be useful to have a group of people in similar situation.

My son turned 1 year old last month… me and my wife are both foreigners so we use daycare… i live in Hsinchu…

nice to hear from you guys, I can’t wait for mine to start sleeping more than 3-4 hours without getting up. There are a few cafes in Taipei City I know of that have a friendly atmosphere to meet and chat in. We could arrange a time that suits everyone.

A friend used to live in Hsinchu and I would go there… do you guys have days you are in Taipei?

I have a 2 year old, with a second on the way. I’m in Taichung, but I’ll be visiting Taipei during the day on Thursday, if anyone wants to meet up.

The dudes! The dudes! I can see you guys sharing tips over stroller walks at the park. Awesome!

A small world… it’s like 5 minutes ago I finished downloading the demo courses of level 1 of “Learn Chinese Online” to my phone after deciding that continuing pimsleur chinese is not what I want as it started feeling too much Mainland Chinese to my wife.

I’m available on Thursday and would like to meet :slight_smile:

[quote=“ekimemre”]A small world… it’s like 5 minutes ago I finished downloading the demo courses of level 1 of “Learn Chinese Online” to my phone after deciding that continuing pimsleur chinese is not what I want as it started feeling too much Mainland Chinese to my wife.

I’m available on Thursday and would like to meet :slight_smile:[/quote]

Hah. Then we have 2 topics to discuss! How about 4 pm this Thursday (Oct 17) in the Q Square Mall (next to the Taipei Bus Station)?

4pm on Oct 17 is a good for me.

Ok, I’ll PM you my contact details in the next little while. If anyone else wants to join us, let me know here and I’ll PM you my details as well.

[quote=“ekimemre”]nice to hear from you guys, I can’t wait for mine to start sleeping more than 3-4 hours without getting up. There are a few cafes in Taipei City I know of that have a friendly atmosphere to meet and chat in. We could arrange a time that suits everyone.

A friend used to live in Hsinchu and I would go there… do you guys have days you are in Taipei?[/quote]

ill be on a biz trip for 2 months leaving on Saturday :frowning: … ill miss my baby

I’d like to, but tomorrow is really difficult for me. Maybe next time.

LAST HOUR EDIT: I may be able to go for a while, after all. Just tell me where/when and i’ll try and push the stroller there. :slight_smile:

Sorry I missed it, my daughterdidn’t get much sleep today and was really cranky. And a little while ago, she has puked so hard I felt like father Karras.

I suppose being upset doesn’t play well with her tummy…

Sorry to hear your daughter is not feeling well. Must be hard on you as well, probably harder than it is on her.

We should definitely meet up in the future. I liked to chat about kids with Adam, and would like to do it again.

Sure thing! I’d like to meet more people that can really understand what I’m going through. I work at home and take care of the baby, the wife works at her office and even she doesn’t really understands… She tells me she’s tired, I tell her “me too”, and she always adds “yeah, but I work”. :’(

Hello,

You doing it without your wife for a whole day is amazing. Whole week, every week wow! I work at home too, but my wife also is at home. So I can always call for help.

I’m starting to feel how poor sleep and the time caring for a baby can have a rather big impact on communication between spouses, which leads to more stress because of lack of sharing and listening.

I liked your work on deviantart :slight_smile:

On another note I subscribed to the “City Playgroup Taipei” mailing list, have not gone to any yet, probably will have to wait a while for something good for a 3-4 month old, was tempted to go the halloween event next month, but with trick-or-treating, games, costumes etc. my baby is a little young for it.

Well… I have a brother, 7 1/2 years younger than me. When I was 9 years old I learnt to cook, change diapers, etc… My parents worked hard all day, and my brother couldn’t wait until they came home, so I just stepped up and took care of him. Life training. She just depends on me, so I just have to do it.

I really like drawing, painting, sculpting, writing and almost any kind of artistic expression. Since I came to Taiwan I haven’t had a lot of time to spare, though (since my daughter was born, even less!). I can’t wait for her to be old enough to teach her how to draw, and do creative things together :smiley:

[quote=“ekimemre”]Hello,

You doing it without your wife for a whole day is amazing. Whole week, every week wow! I work at home too, but my wife also is at home. So I can always call for help.

I’m starting to feel how poor sleep and the time caring for a baby can have a rather big impact on communication between spouses, which leads to more stress because of lack of sharing and listening.

I liked your work on deviantart :slight_smile:

On another note I subscribed to the “City Playgroup Taipei” mailing list, have not gone to any yet, probably will have to wait a while for something good for a 3-4 month old, was tempted to go the halloween event next month, but with trick-or-treating, games, costumes etc. my baby is a little young for it.[/quote]

Hi,

It’s great to see the dads getting together.

The Playgroup events are as much for parents as they are for kids. It’s a chance to hook up with other parents/families, and it is good to get those friendships when your kids are little. I joined when my son was three months old. He’s now 9, and his friends in that group are kids of the parents I met when I first joined, who stayed in Taiwan. (Honestly, go now before your kids get to the age they demand all your attention during the playgroup time and you don’t get to talk to any grownups!) The bigger events are good to go to if you are a dad, because many dads only make it to the three big events - Easter, Halloween, and Christmas. If you bring a baby, the older kids and parents whose kids have grown up will likely help you look after him/her.

You are also all welcome to come along to the Parent’s Place open play on Tuesday mornings, 10am-12 noon. It’s a good space because your little ones can crawl around in the meeting room and there are toys etc to keep toddlers occupied while you talk. We’ve had a few dads come along in the past, but their kids are now in kindergarten. It’s very low-key.