Parenting

This Mom Swears By Her Family's Weekend "Dadurday" Tradition

It's a win-win for mom and dad!

by Katie Garrity
This mom swears by her family's "Dadurday" tradition, which involves lots of father-daughter time.
Kelly Irene / TikTok

Stay-at-home parents know that feeling of sweet joy when their partner walks through the door after a long day home with the kids. Touched out and brain full of mush, passing off the kids to the working parent is true bliss. However, those few hours between dinner and bedtime just don’t do the trick sometimes — for either the kids or the parent.

One family implemented the smart (and amazingly named) concept of “Dadurday,” where mom gets a well-deserved break and dad gets some quality time with his kids.

“We had implemented this thing in our house called “Dadurday,” And Dadurday is slowly becoming one of the most anticipated days of the week for us,” TikTok mom Kelly Irene begins in her video.

‘Basically every Saturday ... we do this where my husband will take our toddler, and they will just go off on these little adventures together. I am not invited. This is just daddy and daughter’s special time, and they go and they have the time of their lives. They might go to the beach. or they might go to a waterfall or go on a hike. Or they might just go swimming in town, like whatever. They do whatever they want. I don't even ask. None of my business. They are going off and having the time of their lives. “

She continues, “And she lives for it. He lives for it because it's his special bonding time with her. He works like Monday through Friday. So he works from home. So he is still getting like good time with her during the week, but he is not having Dadurday experiences on weekdays. So, when Saturday rolls around, it's his time to shine. They love it.”

Kelly goes on to say that after Dadurday is done, they are both so wiped that it’s even more of a break for her.

“She always comes back pooped. Like absolutely wiped out because they had so much fun. She takes a long ass nap. It's just a great experience for everyone. All around. Couldn't recommend it enough. And I do recognize we only have one child. So I'm sure as our family expands, Dadurday is probably going to look a little different. It's going to evolve!” she said.

After her video got traction on TikTok, several other parents shared their own versions of “Dadurday.”

“We call it Public Transportation Day because both my son and husband love the bus. They go wherever they can go on the bus or the subway and come back with stories of adventure,” one user wrote.

One dad wrote, “Saturdays are the day my wife sleeps in, I get up with the baby and we go to the hardware store, run errands and get doughnuts! Come home mid-morning when mom’s rested!”

“Girl dad here.. I’m totally doing this. Love it,” another dad mentioned.

Other commentators remember special weekend days with their own dads, looking back on the time fondly.

“We unintentionally did this in my family! My dad would make everyone a big breakfast, then he take me and my brother somewhere. Picnic, fishing, errands, etc. It was the best!!!!” one user wrote.

Another mentioned, “When I was a toddler my dad took me to zoo, McDonald’s, and target for a my little pony every Friday. I’m 22 now and this was my favorite thing that I did with my dad to this day!”

One user asked what Kelly gets up to when her husband and kid are off having adventures. She responded with a video update.

“Thank you for asking because Dadurday is just as much for me as it is for dad,” she begins. “If not more for me actually.”

“I love Dadurday. I am Dadurday's biggest advocate ... but some days I just rot, and I don't do anything productive. I just lay around. If that's what I need — to be a potato for a day — I'll do that. But other days like today ... I'm just doing a bunch of laundry and getting packed because we leave for California in a couple days. My very best friend is getting married, so I'm just getting ready for that. It's a lot easier to do that when I'm all by myself.”