When people saw Seth Megow out with his four kids, they usually jumped to the same conclusion. A kind stranger might pat him on the shoulder, smile, and say, “What a nice husband, giving Mom a little kid-free time.” Others would chuckle and remark, “Looks like you’ve got your hands full today.” Seth usually smiled, nodded, and carried on. He explained that he was not a fill-in babysitter but a full-time single dad of four elementary-age children and took more energy than he had most days. And besides, if he tried to explain, one of his kids would probably chime in loudly with their favorite line: “WANNA MARRY MY DAD?”
That had become a running joke in the Megow household. His kids had made it their mission to be his matchmakers, constantly scanning for potential candidates. It embarrassed Seth more often than not, but he couldn’t help but admire their persistence. They wanted happiness for him, even when their approach was straight out of a sitcom. From the outside, people often assumed the Megows were just a regular family unit, out catching frogs or making scavenger hunts together. The truth was, their story had been anything but ordinary.
It started in 2003 when Seth was a self-described nerdy teenager with a giant afro and an old Volkswagen bus. That fall, he fell in love with his best friend, a petite blonde with a pixie cut and flowing skirts. She turned him down repeatedly, but he kept showing up and being her friend. Eventually, she kissed him, and just like that, the friendship turned into something more. By January 2005, they were married in a wedding that looked more like a Woodstock reunion than a formal ceremony. Tie-dye headbands, love beads, and face paint were precisely what they wanted, a celebration of love and community rather than stiff tradition.
The early years were blissful in their own scrappy way. The newlyweds lived in a tiny duplex with ceilings so low Seth had to duck, but they barely noticed because they were broke, busy, and endlessly in love. College classes, side jobs, and volunteering blended, and their first daughter, Stevie, came in 2008. Soon after, Neela, Titus, and finally little Olive arrived. Four babies in less than five years. The house was filled with noise, giggles, and toys underfoot, and the Megows poured themselves into parenting.
For a while, things felt steady. Seth worked full-time running technology for a university, while his wife taught part-time and managed most of the caregiving. But cracks started to show around 2013. She wanted more freedom, more nights out, more time away from the relentless demands of motherhood. Seth understood at first. Everyone needs a break. But the breaks grew longer, the absences more frequent, and slowly, the center of their marriage began to shift. Arguments replaced date nights, tension replaced laughter. Seth clung desperately to the hope that they could fix it, but his best friend was slipping away.
When she moved out, Seth was juggling full-time work and parenting alone. He kept up appearances on social media, smiling in pictures, but inside, he was gutted. The lowest moment came one night when he found all four kids asleep by the front door, hoping their mother might come home. That broke something in him, but it also lit a fire. He realized his children needed more than the leftovers of his energy. They required his whole heart, and from that night on, he resolved to give them exactly that.
The shift wasn’t easy. Seth cried, prayed, and doubted himself. He plastered the house with his children’s artwork and filled their days with scavenger hunts, games, and crafts. He made joy a discipline, a daily choice, until slowly, the house began to hum with life again. His kids laughed more, opened up more, and in the process, he began to heal, too. Divorce had crushed his confidence, but single fatherhood reshaped him into someone new—someone more empathetic, more compassionate, and more present.
Now, when people assume he’s just “giving Mom a break,” Seth still smiles. Correcting them isn’t worth it. What matters is that his kids know their worth, and he knows his. He jokes about dating again, but the truth is, he isn’t in a hurry. This season, as exhausting as it can be, is one he doesn’t want to rush through. Because hidden inside the chaos of grocery trips, spilled juice boxes, and frog hunts, Seth has discovered something he once thought was gone forever: joy.
