Being modern: Paternity leave - Features - Health & Families - The Independent Employed new fathers have been able to take advantage of two weeks" paid paternity leave for a while now. But proposed legislation is consolidating the rights of fathers to extend the leave to nearly a year. A year! I'm recently back at work after 11 weeks" paternity leave at home with my daughters, a four-year-old and a 12-month-old. Even that brief window convinced me that we fathers are about to be handed an opportunity to push the concept of parenting into new and exciting areas. Here's what I learnt: Never demur at the opportunity to serve cous cous to a 10-month-old: surely the most dynamic and interactive dining experience available. A few narrow-minded parenting manuals pooh-pooh the idea of a lone parent undertaking DIY with small children. Not I! That shelf will be up in weeks, literally. Get yourself a man-pinny - the children will respect your authority and your partner will be aroused as never before. Forbid the children from watching OOglies on CBBC at all costs. It's dark, it's violent, it's too good for them, frankly. We all lose patience with the food preparation - accept that paternity leave is fundamentally like running a crap restaurant and you'll be back on track. Point out where your wife has been going wrong in her own childcare. Follow up with an email. She will see sense and the necessary changes will be made. Let the four-year-old take charge of the baby whenever possible - nothing is more important than the special bond between them. The pre-school pamper night: it starts with prosecco and facials, it ends in The Greatest House Anthems... Ever! and a punch-up over a missing lunch box. Don't say I didn't tell you. Accept mums" play-date invitations, and enjoy the always surprising reaction of husbands when you next see them and tell them how much you love what they've done with the bedroom. Agree to impersonate your four-year-old's favourite Toy Story characters all day long for a rich and varied interior life.