Search Results for: blog boost your single parent confidence

Stop and Listen: Your Body Is Trying To Tell You Something

I think the reason that most of us are in need of losing a few pounds is that we do not listen to the tell-tale signs of our stomachs and instead listening to our minds. Food tastes good. There is no doubt about that. Most of us like food. I had always wished that I were one of those people that did not like food so much. There would be no problem then. If you will notice, most thin people do not like food that much and eat only to satisfy the need. They eat until satisfied and then push … Continue reading →

Math Skills for a Single Parent

Strangely enough, I think I use more math in my every day life as a single parent than I did when I was partnered. Even though I paid most of the bills when there were two of us, we also had two incomes and two people spending money. As a single parent, I have become completely independent with my finances, but I have also had to learn about investing, retirement and as a small business owner, there has been a boost in the need for math there. I truly believe that every single parent needs to make sure that he … Continue reading →

Mother or Single Mother

When you tell people that you are a parent (and this article can be about Dads too), how do you identify yourself? Do you tell them you are the “mother of two” (or one or three or whatever) or do you describe yourself as a “single mother”? I think it is interesting how we identify and think of ourselves when it comes to our role as single parents. Do you find that you temper your self-description to fit the audience or person you are meeting? I find that most of the time, I tend to clarify that I am a … Continue reading →

Do You Have a Vision for Your Family?

We talk a great deal here in the Single Parents blog about adjustment and coping and trying to boost our confidence and self-esteem around our role as single parents. So much of what we focus on has been about “getting through” crisis, transition, and the struggles of single parenthood, I thought it might be encouraging if we focus on ways we can create long-term visions and healthy goals for what sort of family life we’d like to achieve. Having a plan or vision for life as a family, or for our children, is not the exclusive domain of the two-parent … Continue reading →

Cherish Yourself First (Don’t Lose Yourself in Your Kids)

As single parents, we often put so much energy into our families, and work so hard to counter-balance some of the realities of being a solo-parent family, that our entire identity can get completely encompassed by parenthood. I am the first person to admit that I put my family first and have a tendency to think of myself as a mom above all else. But, the truth is, I am ME first, and I do fill a lot of other roles and wear a lot of other hats besides my “mom hat.” The most important thing, I’ve learned, is that … Continue reading →

Take Inventory of Your Good Points

Alright, you’ve beat yourself up, settled in with a pint of ice cream, or filled your journal with all your parenting mistakes and all the reasons you are single and unlovable–now it is time to take stock of all your good points–all those things you are doing well and all the fabulous and wonderful things you do as a vibrant and successful single parent… I know it is much easier to find fault with ourselves. Plus, we’ve got a whole world out there telling us that we have failed and that single parent families are contributing to the downfall of … Continue reading →

Denial and The Single Parent

You may know by now that denial is an amazingly powerful survival tool. Like many human coping mechanisms, it is not one of those things that is inherently good or bad, but, instead, is a survival skill that has its place. As single parents, we may find ourselves utilizing denial to help us through a particularly difficult time, but at some point, we do have to learn how to process and let go of all that denial. Denial can show its face in many forms–in thinking that we will get back together with an ex who has left or abandoned … Continue reading →

How Realistic Are Your Expectations?

I remember years ago when I had tiny children and found myself increasingly parenting on my own–there would be weeks where I was solo parenting and I had certainly never expected that I would be “that kind of parent.” That hadn’t been the agreement I had with my husband and my children’s father, after all! We were going to do everything 50/50, or so he had promised. Over time, I learned all sorts of important lessons about parenting on one’s own—enough so that when it became apparent that I was “almost” on my own and the marriage was over, I … Continue reading →

Making the Tough Decisions and Choices…On Your Own

Nobody promised single parenthood was going to be easy—but many of the realities of living family life as a single parent have both positive and negative aspects, and it can all be in how you look at things. Making decisions and choices can be one of those things—it’s sometimes nice not having to consult with anyone else or take someone else’s ideas into account when we are making the tough decisions, but there are other times when we really could use someone to help us share the load… Having the confidence to make the tough decisions and choices alone can … Continue reading →

Finding Single Parent Family-Friendly Service Providers

We single parents get enough judgment from folks for free, we shouldn’t have to pay for it too. At least, that is my theory on why it is important to find service providers—child care providers, doctors, nurses, housekeepers, etc. that are friendly and supportive of our single parent status. I am of the opinion that we don’t need to pay for all that extra judgment that isn’t helpful for us anyway! I admit, it can be hard to “interview” prospective service providers in order to find out how they feel about single parent families. But, if you are hiring someone … Continue reading →