Hardly a day goes by without a little play at the Bennett household, with kids jumping on dad or playing a game of chase and tickle. All four Bennett kids love to play with their dad.
It comes as naturally to Richard as the desire for a little caution comes to mom Tania.
It's all important in the life of a young child. Playing is learning, but parents definitely tackle it from different angles.
"Moms and dads are very different when it comes to play," said Carolyn Pirak of the Talaris Institute.?Moms may think about the learning value and ask, 'What is the best thing I can do to help my child?' and dads just take play for what it is. And research shows children prefer dads as early as 2 1/2 years old."
Outside the Bennett house, the play continues. Tania has fun with the kids too, but the difference in play is obvious. Tania blows flower heads, Richard blows the tires off the wagon while Tania nervously watches.
"I would never do that, never ever," said Tania.
And to be fair, Richard doesn't do this all the time. A lot of the time he plays sports with his kids, all sports, sometimes all at the same time. Maybe that's part of the appeal of dads.
"They're just a little rowdier than moms sometimes," said Pirak.
Rowdier, louder and a little rougher.
So is this why dads are more popular than moms as playmates? That they're a little more willing to get physical and play rough? That's part of it. But there's more to it.
It's not just rough play that makes dads the rock stars of play. If you watch closely, Richard leads his kids through a whole range of intensity in play and fun.
Childhood development experts say that's not just okay, it's great, and dads tend to go with the flow better.
"Children will be engaged in a puzzle and then they get bored and crawl away from the puzzle, mom will stay there and finish the puzzle, but dads push the puzzle aside and say, 'OK, let's move on to the next game,'" said Pirak.
But if dads are the rock stars, we can still learn a lot from moms, such as how to keep play safe and when a child has had enough, moms tend to be a little more tuned in on safety and moments of meltdown.
That's when kids turn to moms.
But when they're ready for more play, and it sure doesn't take long, rock star Richard is ready to roll.
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