NEW YORK (CNNfn) - It's an early Friday afternoon and Jeffrey Felmus is pushing his son Nate on a swing in a New York City playground. This isn't an early start to Felmus' weekend, this is his full time job.

Felmus, who never dreamed he would be the one staying at home, is one of a growing number of stay-at-home dads.

"It was never a fantasy of mine," he said. "But it's just been a blessing for me. I've been very lucky to have that opportunity."

He's joined at the playground by other dads who make up NY Dads -- a group for stay-at-home-fathers who get together on Fridays for a weekly meeting to talk about raising children.

Tavis Allison, who met his wife when he was a graduate student and she was already an assistant professor, chose to stay at home with their son Javi, while his wife continued to climb the academic ladder.

"She was further along that path," Allison said. "I'd be making as much money as it costs to hire somebody to do this job."

With unemployment at its highest rate in almost nine years, some of the workforce is sitting at home. Some men are using that free time to care for their children. Play video (Real or Windows Media)

Unemployment, which stands at 6.1 percent for May, is at its highest level since July 1994 and has affected men more than women. Of the almost 4 million lay-offs in 2002, 2.3 million of those were men, compared to just 1.5 million laid-off women.

One reason women have fared better is because education, healthcare services, and other sectors that traditionally employ females continue to grow while male-dominated sectors such as manufacturing suffered significant losses.

Stay-at-home dads are still far from the norm. According to government statistics, households with a working wife and non-working husband account for only 1 in 20 married couples and with the average woman still making just 76 cents to the man's dollar, most men are still their family's major breadwinners.

Women, however, are earning more college degrees and MBAs than men, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and one in three women currently earns more than her husband.

When traditional roles are reversed, experts say, it is the children who often win because many times, working moms will go that extra mile to connect to their children.

"When they're at home after work, the weekends, they're very involved. They often feel very torn about being away from their children and society often gives them a very hard time about it. So they're anxious to get in every bit of parenting that they can. And the kids are undoubtedly thriving because of it." said Dr. Kyle Pruett, author of Fatherneeds and a child studies professor at Yale University.

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But for dads, switching roles is not always easy.

"For men it's been particularly challenging because in this society we have a double standard -- when women go out and do what's considered men's work they're elevated in the eyes of society -- but when men stay home and do what's historically women's work they're diminished," said Libby Gill, author of Stay-At-Home-Dads.

Web sites, daddy groups and expert books have cropped up to provide support for these men. There's even a new line of diaper bags geared specifically toward men.

Also, technology has made it easier for men to stay in the work game while staying home with the kids. Many men are able to telecommute, freelance, or work in the evenings.

"Having experienced all this time with them I'm really ready to get back into the adult world. I won't baby talk to adults so much anymore, but it's been a lot of fun," Chris Lynn said.  

--from CNNfn's Nellie Abernathy and Mara Wilcox.