Most dads I know have some tricks they do with their kids, whether it’s throwing them in the air, playing airplane, or swinging them around in a particular way.
My own dad taught me a few tricks that he made up himself, and I’ve gotten about a decade of use out of them myself (so far), with my own kids, nieces and nephews, and the occasional toddler whose parents are brave enough to let their kid try it. I’m sure there are moms out there who do these (my wife learned all of these, too), but usually when I see somebody throwing a kid way up in the air, it’s a dad.
Anyway, here’s to my dad, who had a ton of ways to get a kid to smile or laugh. My two favorite tricks that he taught me:
(Or watch it on YouTube.)
And please note: while I’m generally against treating kids like they’re made of glass, do be careful if you try these yourself. Swinging a kid into furniture or a light fixture isn’t going to make anyone happy.
Awesome!
My brother had kids before me, so I got my practice in with some level of retreat available in case things go wrong. One of my more wild attempts did result in a kid flying through the air to land on a coffee table, launching (and breaking) a pilsner. Fortunately no long term damage, but my visit that day did cut quite short.
I do pretty much the same with my kids, except I flip mine into the couch. We call it the flipping machine. A tremendous workout.