Fatherlessness is linked to poverty, high dropout rates, crime, adolescent drug use and teenage pregnancy. When Saul and Fabiola Gonzalez decided to start a family, they decided that they would both raise the children, even if it meant doing things a little differently.
"Now they're growing so fast and they tell me, Yami, says you know what daddy, I like how you do my hair -- how you do a ponytail, that’s what I do."
Meet Saul Gonzalez. Daytime Mr. Mom. Hairdresser, breakfast maker, storyteller, chief bottle washer and bottle filler, and all around care-giver to 7-year-old Yami, and 3-year-old Alexa. All of this because he wants it that way.
"Happy to be part of the family and happy to take care of the girls and proud to stay home with them because the kids are growing so fast, and they never going to back to be a child."
"Both Saul and I are immigrants and we weren’t born here, but we know what is best for our children and it works. Saul doesn’t let that bother him at all. In his family his bothers would never do this. They work and wife stays at home. For him he’s proud to be at home for the girls."
Fabiola Gonzalez works full time at First 5. She gets home around 5:00 p.m., which is about the time Saul goes off to work as a restaurant manager. Both parents are dedicated to raising their children without day care.
"It’s great, my oldest one is 7-years-old and she’s never been into a child care setting, and the little one is 3-years-old and she’s been with dad ever since she was born."
"I can play golf in the future, right now just concentrate on them, because I think it’s really important to me."
Being a stay-at-home dad is not possible for every family, but a little more dad involvement in school certainly is, and we’ll take a look at that Thursday.
TXT 24
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