What are your names and your child’s name and age?
I’m Jonathan, my husband is Mitchell (gray hair) and our Son Mark is 2 years old.
How did you decide on your child’s name?
Picking his name was the hardest. We wanted it to be a strong name something that sounded good with Dr. in front of it, Dr. Mark Henry Holmes (sounds good, right?)
How did you decide what your child would call you?
Deciding how Mark would address us was difficult. I’m Daddy and Mitch is Papa. We knew calling us by our names wouldn’t work for us and we wanted something “family centric” so we decided on that.
How did you decide your child’s last name? Is it hyphenated? Only after one parent?
Last name was easy. He has my last name because Mitch felt Beier was too difficult growing up. So we went with mine, Holmes.
What were you most afraid of about becoming a parent?
I was most afraid of being prepared and how we would answer questions about our family when he gets older. Mitch was worried about the same and we were both worried “will he like us”.
What is the most rewarding part of being a parent?
Watching him learn and grow. His successes are the most rewarding.
What do you do for fun as an entire family?
For fun we like to go on adventures. We love the aquariums and the zoos but we also enjoy going places like parks and the beach.
What was a “must have” item you used when he was little? Or now that he is older?
Must have item was his turtle when he was new born. It’s a night light that plays soothing ocean sounds and casts an ocean on the ceiling. He loved it. Now, must haves are his trucks and cars and his Woobie.
Describe your parenting styles. Is one parent stricter?
Mitch is definitely stricter than I am. We allow him to be him. We allow him to play and get into stuff and explore. He is now at the stage where he tests his limits (all the time) so I am learning that I can’t let him get away with everything.
Finish this sentence with one word… “To me, family is….”
To me, family is, the most important thing in my life. Making sure our son is prepared for the world and that we raise a young man that is kind, loving and compassionate are our primary responsibilities. I think this is true for any parent. We are no exception to this rule no matter the construct of our family dynamic.
