So no horror stories on your end?
Were you married?
My first son was born one year before our wedding.
When you say horror stories thats a tricky question.
For me, I constantly worry if I am doing right by my children. When teaching my sons to ride a bike watching them fall again and again was painful. Teaching my kids to read at 3 and seeing them struggle took alot of patience. Turning down opportunities because of your children leaves you questioning.
But, at the same time, seeing my sons repeatedly get up and try again from falling of their bikes. And then the joy of seeing them succeed is indescribable. After hours and hours of sight words and drilling phonics, when your child is reading full books to you and seeing the excitement in their eyes about reading the next story is unimaginable. You sit and wonder, "should I have taken that opportunity?" then your kid scores a goal at the soccer game you had time to attend because you didn't want to give all your time to work, it becomes clear, you did the right thing.
Being a parent is tough. It does have a cost. But, recognize that kids don't need as much as people think. Name brand clothes will get you in trouble, so don't worry about that. Keep fruit in the house all the time to save money. Have them drinking water early so when if they say I'm thirsty, they won't complain about drinking water sometimes.
Remember, kids are resilient and adjust to any situation. They never know things are bad unless you tell them things are bad. So dont!!
From my experience, it takes two main things to be a good dad.
First, put your kids first. Before you buy yourself anything, ask yourself does my child need something. If your eating anything, and I mean anything, they will ask for a bite. Lol!! Take a breath, put them first, and share.
Second, learn to be patient. Kids make mistakes. They drop things. They make messes. They are curious. Be patient. They are not doing anything just to get on your nerves. They are little explorers who have on been on this Earth for a very short time.
Your kids are really your only real meaningful contribution to humanity. I love being a dad. I wouldn't change it for the world. I cant wait to meet my next little one who is due here in early May.