Dad regrets being the 'sh***y parent', leaving his phone down for an entire month

When parenting, work-life has it's perks, but it also carries a burden. 

You spend time away from the family home, long enough to keep sane, but short enough that you're home playing games and embracing cuddles. 

But sometimes, being at home doesn't mean a lot if you're not really present. 

Brad Kearns, was sitting on his couch, scrolling through his phone, catching up with the world. 

However, while he was doing so the dad-of-two failed to notice his son, Knox, trying to grab his attention. 

He saw him, he heard him call, he heard him asking if Dad admired his toy, Brad answered, but he wasn't REALLY paying attention, he was distracted by the internet. 

"Eventually I looked up from my phone and said 'daddy's busy mate, can you go and play with Finn'. He walked out of the room and began playing quietly in the other room with his brother. I continued scrolling."

"He came back in and the same thing happened. I hadn't seen him in two days due to my work hours. He was bored and he missed me and he just wanted my attention," figured the dad-of-two. 

But Brad was too busy, and he had dismissed his son.

"I realised shortly after and put my phone away. I felt like shit. I was being the dad I never wanted to be. I'd had enough."

Brad went to the next room to find Knox playing, asking if it was OK for Dad to join in: "His entire face lit up."

"We played all day and I left my phone on the bench. That was a month ago now. I gave myself a much needed time-out. And it's been the best month with my boys."

Blogging online has played an integral part in Brad's life and his family's, but the one thing he learned in that month was that his kids are more important than meeting online demands. 

"I can't post every day. Sometimes I will miss a week. I don't mind. Kids don't give a shit about the world. All they care about is you being right there with them."

"We need to put the phones down when we're with them," concluded the busy dad. 

We couldn't have said it better ourselves – time with loved ones is time well spent.