3 Reasons I’m Happy to Be a Stay at Home Dad-Trepreneur {Guest Post}

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Disclosure: Please note that I do have an affiliate relationship with WeMontage, and if you click through my site to WeMontage and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission for introducing you to the product. This is a product I truly love…I have several in my home, and I have also made them for others. 

Today I’m excited to be introducing you to a guest on the blog, a friend of mine, James Oliver, of WeMontage and ‘trepLifedad. I first “met” James on Twitter a couple years back. I was intrigued by his product, WeMontage removable photo wallpaper. Photography and creating keepsakes is a passion of mine, and what better way to enjoy your memories day after day than to create a gallery wall and put them front and center in your life?  You should definitely check out his website, if you are interested in learning more about his product. (I also have several blog posts about WeMontage that you can reference as well.)

James also recently started ‘trepLifedad, which is a lifestyle blog for parent entrepreneurs. I know many of my readers own small businesses and are work at home moms, and I think you will find his blog interesting, as well as helpful. I hope you will stop by to check it out.

 

Being a stay-at-home dad and entrepreneur was not something I was initially excited about. Well, the stay-at-home-dad part, at least.

To cut expenses, I had to stay home and take care of my young twins when my business, WeMontage, the world’s only website that lets you turn photos into large collages on removable wallpaper, ran out of cash and my investors decided not to reinvest.

At first, I felt like a failure. No one goes into business hoping to have major setbacks, but like any good entrepreneur, I adapted.

Thankfully, four moths after deciding to stay home with the kids, I’m really happy to be a stay-at-home dad-trepreneur. And here are three reasons why.

 

Spontaneous Moments

Let’s face it, our kids are only twenty-two months old once (as far as we know), and being able to bond with them during these early days is both precious and priceless. One of the things I most enjoy are the spontaneous moments of pure cuteness and hilarity.

For example, just before I was about to give the kiddos a bath the other day, I walked in on this.

 

 

 

 

Then there was this super-cute scribbling moment on the chalkboard, with my color-commentary included. 🙂

 

 

 

 

My wife and I regularly watch videos like these dating back to when the kids were in the NICU. They were born three months prematurely and weighed only two pounds. My son spent two and half months in the hospital and came home on oxygen support.

Being home during the day lets me capture more of these great moments and I think it’s pretty cool.

 

Healthier Eating

My wife is obsessed about feeding the kids healthy and organic foods when possible. One side benefit is my wife and I now eat healthier too since the kids eat what we eat.

Here’s a fun segment I did on Good Day Wisconsin in which I talked about family, entrepreneurship, and cooked a tasty recipe from my blog.

 

 

 

 

I’m More Focused

I initially thought getting work done would be an issue while taking care of the kids; this simply hasn’t been the case.

Naturally, I work while they are napping, eating, and in the evenings. But I think I’m more focused now and work more efficiently, as I don’t have time for distractions given the myriad things I need to do for the business (e.g., phone calls, emails, customer interaction, marketing, PR, etc.).

As many of you know, being a parent is both rewarding and challenging, as is being an entrepreneur. Being a stay-home dad-trepreneur is somewhat more challenging, but I’m happy to say I see the rewards far outweighing the challenges.

And I look forward to continuing to build that special bond with my twins, Thaddeus and Zoe.

Happy holidays.

P.S., Things have gotten better for WeMontage, as a result of a few recent PR hits on the TODAY Show and the DIY Network.

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James Oliver is Co-Founder of the world’s cutest twins. CEO of WeMontage.com-turns your photos into removable wallpaper. Parent-entrepreneur advocate via trepLifeDad.com. SheKnows.com Experts Among Us contributor for entrepreneurship.