Adult kids? If there ever was a paradoxical statement, here it is. How can an adult be a kid? Well it is very simple. As long as you are alive your children will always be your kids. An adult or a ‘child’ moving out of the house, paying rent, getting married and starting a family do not take away from the role of the father in this person’s life. The role at this stage is usually more defined. It comes with financial responsibility and support, advice on a much bigger scale and a place to go home to. Daddy’s little girl will always be just that. When a dad will look at his grown son and see a man, he will always see his little girl even when she is married with kids of her own.

The role of a dad in an “adult kid’s” life can be to just give financial support. If your adult child has not yet found their footing or place in society, it is usually the father who they turn to for money. An adult man may find it easier to go to dad for money to help with expenses than to go to his mother. He may not always be that he needs money but financial advice. As we very well know it is the fathers who are seen as the head of a household so when the child becomes a man. He too will be considered the head of the household so he would naturally turn to his dad for guidance on how to provide for his family and of course how to secure a future for them. Dad, even if you are not the world’s best at investment or accounting, try to get some help for your son which invariably will help you too.

In the life of an “adult female child”, the father must always be the father of daddy’s little girl. Your daughter will look to you and your qualities when she chooses a husband for herself. She might be shy about actually talking to you about some aspects of a relationship, of course but worry not; mom has that covered. She will come and ask that you talk to your future son-in-law though. And when she needs a shoulder to cry on- a big strong understanding shoulder who will love her and not judge her, she will turn to daddy. You must recognize that when your daughter comes to you, she needs your strength and approval. Be patient and selective in giving advice.

A parent’s job is never easy and it is forever. Eighteen years is the beginning of another stage of your child’s life and for some it means their job of being a parent is over but it is just not so. Children need to know that home will always be home so that when they stumble upon the harsh realities of life, dad will be there. Dads need to just be ready to give fatherly advice and put the child up in his old room when he needs just that. Children must always have a home where their parents are, regardless of age.