While some men are offended when they are referred to as Mr. Mom, Josh Watts embraces the title - and the role.

"I always joke and say I'm not a very good man because I can't fix anything ... but I think it's just because of who I am, because I was raised by a woman," he said.

Watts, a full-time youth pastor at New River Community Church of God in Sneads Ferry and a student in an online master's degree program, is the primary care giver to his and his wife Linda's 14-month-old daughter Trinity.

Linda works full-time as an academic counselor at Coastal Carolina Community College in Jacksonville and also teaches a developmental psychology class two nights a week.

"It is definitely role reversal in our house, I think so," Linda Watts said. "He was raised in a single parent home, so being raised with only a woman's view point I think he is more a little more sensitive than most men as far as doing housework."

But that doesn't necessarily make others accepting of the family's structure.

"While it seems normal to us it seems very weird to other people," she said.

Although this switch in roles has become part of their everyday lives, Linda Watts realizes how fortunate they are in their situation.

"For me it's a very big blessing because I work a lot ... to know that I don't have to leave (Trinity) with strangers, to know that she's going to the have the opportunity to have a relationship with her father that most people don't get a chance to have," Linda said.

Josh Watts was raised primarily by his mother and said he did not have much of a relationship with his father growing up.

"My parents separated when I was 4, so I saw my dad every other Friday. So that's only two days a month until I was 16," he said.

Because of that, Josh Watts wants more than anything to be a part of his daughter's life now and in the future.

"I know that I can be different. I can be a part of her life," he said. "That's my hope - when she's a grown woman to be a part of her life and not be excluded. I think about all my dad missed by not being there."

Without a father to model himself after, Linda Watts said her husband was worried about the kind of father he would be.

"His own father was not a part of his life and prior to having Trinity his biggest fear was being a deadbeat dad because he never knew what a father was supposed to be like," she said. "However, it's obvious that he's using his own bad experiences to make an amazing and rare father."

Josh Watts said he often looks to his father-in-law as a role model for the type of father he wants to be.

"Her dad is ... something to emulate. He's not perfect but he's always been there with his kids," he said.

Trinity attends daycare 16 hours a week to allow her dad some time to focus completely on work. The rest of the time, she's right by his side.

"I love the idea of being with her all the time. As a youth pastor I see a lot of girls who hate their fathers," Josh Watts said.

Spending so much time with his daughter is the foundation behind creating a long lasting relationship with her, he said.

"I guess I just have this hope that our connection will be deeper. That there won't be a doubt in her mind that her daddy loves her," Josh Watts said.

As a youth pastor, Watts devotes at least 45 hours a week to the church, but while some pastors put their church before their family, it's the opposite for him, he said.

"God is first but my family is sure above the church, I honestly believe that (Trinity) has to know that," he said.

Watts said he looks forward to watching his daughter grow up, but he is also savoring their time together now.

"I used to say I looked forward to her surfing with me, but now I take it each day," he said.

As he celebrates his second Father's Day, Josh's advice to new and potential fathers is to believe in themselves.

"I think trust yourself. Trust your judgment and realize that everyone is different," he said. "As long as we just love, I know that sounds clichï¿©, but it will all work out."

Contact Jacksonville/Onslow government reporter Molly DeWitt at 910-219-8457 or mdewitt@freedomenc.com. Visit www.jdnews.com to comment.