Quotes About Fatherhood

I want to be a dad. That's floating to the top of my list. I think it's such an important thing. I'm at the age where everyone has kids, and I ask them, 'Is it like a puppy?' And they go, 'It's 10 times a puppy.'

When I turned 12 or 13 years old, even as a dad, you can't make a kid play anymore, but up until that point, he pushed me to keep playing, and when I turned 13, I didn't want to do anything else. He was just there with me at the cage every day because I wanted him to go with me and throw to me and work on what I needed to work on.

I appreciate what I've achieved, and nearly all of that is because of my dad. He pushed me to train harder than I would have done if he wasn't there to discipline me.

It's hard to always listen to your dad when you get older. You want to move on, but he has the knowledge. I think he did just the right amount of pushing me but also letting me do my thing, and just making sure that I always enjoyed the game, and I'm not feeling pressured.

I've always been a stroller guy. I love pushing them.

I didn't want to be one of these pushy daddies.

The last thing my father told me was: 'On your way up, take me up. On your way down, don't let me down.' A father telling his son that puts some responsibility on my shoulders. He told me that, and I take it very seriously.

Being a father now puts life in perspective. My whole life it's all been about trying to win. And now I'm trying to make a better life for my son than I've had.

I lived the baseball life as a kid, with my dad in it. And I lived the baseball life as an adult, because I was in it. When I retired, I wanted the opportunity to be a little bit more flexible and home-based for my kids.

As an older dad you can certainly get down on the floor. The problem is can you get up again?

I was one of these people, especially early in my career, who balanced the equation too much in favor of my job; I spent most of my life focusing on that. But becoming a dad gave me back perspective; it brought balance into my life.

I was not born when my father retired in 1979, but I watched footage of his games on VHS.

I went to all of Dad's football games. As I got older, I got involved. He taught me everything I know about playing it.

It's tough. That's the side people don't see. You have to balance it, get it right, and be a dad as well as a footballer. That is part of the job. Around this time of year, it's so important.

Having a little boy gave me a foundation and centred my life a bit more.

Fred Astaire was retired when he worked in 'The Pleasure of His Company.' They were lucky to get him to play the father part.

I grew up mainly with my mother, and I would see my father from time to time. But I didn't have a constant male figure.

That's the most fulfilling thing I've experienced ever, being a father.

My dad left when I was young. I didn't have a dad. I'm part of that divorced generation and didn't want to do that to my kids, so I took a year off and became a full-time dad, changed diapers and all that while my wife worked.

I think I'll just become a full-time dad, at home, with my family.

I love being a dad. I'd do it full-time if I didn't have to make a living.

First and foremost, I am a husband and a father, which is a full-time job.

I'm in the gym - that's my full-time job. I leave it all in there. When I walk out of that gym I am now the husband, the friend and the father.

Of course, fatherhood fundamentally changes a lot of your life, but it enriches you, too.