As a new parent, I refused 'dad' outfits. A pair of matching pajamas made me get over myself.

• I'm a dad to one girl, but I had refused that becoming a parent would affect my sense of style.
• Last fall, I was convinced to be part of a segment at the "Today "show.

Technically speaking, I am a girl dad, though sartorially, I prefer not to be. Our daughter was born in January 2022, and while I love being a parent, I don't love the pressure to incorporate that piece of my identity into my dress.

Numerous stints at J.Crew and a general interest in menswear have led to a decent sense of personal style, and I don't see why, on top of everything else we sacrifice as parents, I need to relinquish that as well.

Meanwhile, social medial algorithms feed me all sorts of cringe-worthy apparel: a shirt that says "Dad" in Disney font or one that says "Top Dad" instead of "Top Gun." And it's worse in person. At the farmer's market one week, I saw a man in a Star Wars "I Am Your Father" shirt, long denim shorts, and Velcro sandals. To his credit, he seemed happy.

I had avoided matching outfits

At times, this aversion has been a source of friction. My wife bought me a custom "M&T" hat, knowing I like embroidered "dad hats." I looked at her blankly as she explained that those were the first letters of our daughter and dog's names. I will cop to being a bad gift receiver at that moment. I joked that people would think I worked at M&T Bank. Now, she teases me every time we see a family in themed clothing.

While I have been mostly successful at dodging these matching outfits or other dadly sins, last fall, I was forced to dress the part. My wife's cousin is a producer at NBC and needed a family to model matching pajamas for a fall fashion segment on the "Today" show. It would require us to wake up before sunrise with our then 8-month-old.

Imagine my wife's shock when I submitted willingly. For as much as I hate embarrassing myself, it was worth it, I reasoned, for the story and some marital brownie points.

It was kind of fun

A car service picked us up at 6:30 am, and after a two-hour drive from our home in Long Island, we arrived at a 30 Rock service entrance. After a slight hiccup getting past security, where it seemed like we weren't going to be allowed in as my daughter wasn't yet Covid vaccinated, we were in the green room sipping coffee and getting fitted with our outfits.

As our segment approached, we were escorted to a series of side rooms. "Law & Order" veterans Sam Waterston and Hugh Dancy were being interviewed before us, which meant that as they exited, they were confronted by a cute little baby in "It's Fall Yall" PJs. Staff members graciously took photos for us.

Then, we were up. The editorial director, Adrianna Brach, led the segment, and to nobody's surprise, the hosts and camera were fixated on the baby. As Brach explained how matching pajamas are a big fall trend, Dylan Dreyer told her, "We're not even listening to you," and Al Roker doted, saying, "We love you drooly."

Our portion of the segment lasted a single minute, with our daughter being extremely well-behaved as far as 8-month-olds making their television debuts go. Backstage, we changed back into our clothes and fielded a stream of texts from family and friends who were watching. We got to keep the PJs.

Now look, you still won't ever catch me in some 80s-inspired "Rad Dad" tee, but the whole experience taught me to get over myself and my sense of embarrassment. Chances are, nobody is going to care about what I'm wearing as long as the kid is around. It's not about me, and I suspect that notion will only intensify throughout the years. I have softened my stance toward matching clothes and themed outfits and learned that, as with all things parenting, it's really about finding the level of discomfort you are most comfortable with.