Did you see Matt and Maddy on Oprah?

I did. And it was so lovely to see him -- the unconventional dad -- celebrated. And who can resist the girl in the ladybug dress? Clearly, no one.

If you missed this chance to celebrate dads, here's a link to the clip on Matt and Maddy. Some people have questioned whether the dads featured on this show should have been lauded. It saddens me that those folks don't think there is enough space -- or time on TV or fresh ink on a page or posts on a blog -- to give to both single fathers and single mothers doing a great job raising children alone. I say this as a feminist mama who believes strongly that there is much work to do for women, and foremost mothers. And as a single mother with that code of values, I know my own son's dad could learn a lot about parenting, relating and accountability that Matt and the fathers featured on the show. Do single mothers get enough validation? No. But does that mean we can't take an hour to give credit to some outstanding single fathers out there? Of course not. That just makes me shake my head. (UPDATE: The post linked above has been taken down and replaced with this apology. Apologies are good, in my book.)

Instead of giving more energy to that, let's get back to the crabcakes, cupcakes and cute kids:

What made watching the show even more fun is that Matt and Maddy met Lil E and me for dinner when they were in town taping the show a few weeks ago. While Matt and I talked about blogging and our kids and Oprah (of course), Maddy ate and slept and played with her puff snacks. Lil E adored Maddy and asked about her for days after we said goodbye. He served as our personal papparazzo, snapping pics of the details for us to keep.

Our dinner with our Oprahfied friends -- mostly through Lil E's eyes -- after the jump.

We brought cupcakes from one of our favorite bakeries, Angel Food, to celebrate Maddy's first birthday.

Lil E checks himself out in the lobby mirrors while we wait.

Lil E had cheese pretzels for a snack before his pizza arrived. This stuff is really exciting to a 4-year-old photographer.

Beer. Surprised Maddy with cracker. Box of cupcakes. Beer.

...annnnd whole milk.

Matt and Maddy.

Mommy.

Himself.

Himself with cupcake.

Himself with still-slightly-surprised Maddy.

Chatting happily in the parking garage before falling asleep on the way home.

Comments

[dadshouse]

I agree with you. The world is a big place. There are millions of single parents, moms and dads. We all deserve a pat on the back, whether we're divorced and coparenting, widowed, or left to be a full time parent. Heck, married parents could use a pat on the back too. We're all in this together.

[H-Mama]

I loved that episode! The story about Matt and Maddy broke my heart, but he was an amazing dad. So cool that you got to hang out, and to meet that sweet little girl! :-)

(P.S. I heart Oprah.)