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Single Parent Chaos

It was one of those mornings. They seem to happen much more frequently as a single parent than they did when I was married. I am in the middle of my college finals this week. This is stressful in and of itself; then you add a three year old in the mix and things get slightly more stressful (ever tried studying with a three year old?); to top things off you’re doing it on your own, there’s no one there to give you a 20 minute study break, you simply learn to multi-task like a mad woman. As if this … Continue reading →

Funding Your Education as a Single Parent

Many single parents would do anything to be able to go back to school and finish their education. But it may not seem feasible. College is expensive and unfortunately tuition prices seem to constantly be on the rise, making it more and more of a challenge for people to finance their education, let alone single parents. If you are a single parent, chances are money is tight. Even with child support payments, it never seems to cover everything. Kids are expensive; whatever money you do have goes to meeting their everyday needs. If you are like most of us, there … Continue reading →

Single Parents Are Not Bad Parents

I get so tired of reading about how harmful it is to children to be raised by single parents. I look around at some of the young adults that I know who were raised by single moms and I wonder where these statistics come from. No, being a single parent isn’t anyone’s idea of ideal, but it is not as bad as the media makes it out to be. I’m sure there are children who struggle in single parent families, just as there are children who struggle in two parent families. What is the deciding factor for our children’s well … Continue reading →

Finishing College as a Single Parent

Getting an education is crucial to attaining independence as a single parent. Without it you can never make enough money to be completely financially stable. After a divorce the thought of going back to school can be daunting. Chances are you are working full time just trying to make enough to keep food on the table as it is. You may be afraid of the added expense of going to school. However, going to college doesn’t have to be expensive. There are lots of government grants and scholarships specifically designed to help single mothers go back to school. Going back … Continue reading →

New Graduates Can Be Covered By Parent’s Health Insurance

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In the next few weeks, there will be a lot of college graduation ceremonies taking place. This is the first group of graduates who will be finishing school since the Affordable Care Act required health insurance companies to cover people who are between the ages of 19 and 26 under their parent’s health insurance plan. This is going to make a big difference. The part of the Affordable Care Act that is going to be the most beneficial to new graduates is the part that was made into law in September of 2010. From that point on, insurance companies were … Continue reading →

Higher Education Can Be a Priority for a Single Parent

I will be absolutely honest and confess here that I don’t know if getting my undergraduate (B.A.) degree has actually increased my earning power and potential or not. I live in a college city with a rather tight job market and for the work I do, having that degree might help a bit, but I still don’t make a comfortable living wage without doing freelance work in addition to more conventional type work. BUT, I do think that finishing my college degree as a single parent was important for my family’s stability and my own self esteem. I am somewhat … Continue reading →

Finding a College to Fit Your Needs as a Single parent

Currently I am half way through completing my Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology leading to licensure as a Marriage and Family Therapist. Tonight begins my ninth class. The way my school schedule works is that I attend school two nights per week for four weeks, then move on to the next class. It is intense and a lot of work but I get done quicker and am able to attend full-time and also work full-time. I completed my Bachelor degree just last year at the age of twenty-nine. I moved to California from Arizona at the age of eighteen and … Continue reading →

Liberation Day

Two years ago from yesterday I felt my life crumble underneath me. It was the night my ex-husband left. Unlike some, my initial reaction was relief. I had felt trapped in a miserable marriage for so long, but never was willing to be the one to walk away from it. I felt like I was going to have a second chance at happiness. Within a few moments though, reality set in. It was a fear of the unknown. Everything in my life was about to change. Over the next few months I would move back in with my parents, lose … Continue reading →

When Life Gets in the Way

Since I’ve been parenting alone it seems as if life gets in the way a lot. There are certain things that simply have to be done and sometimes those things get in the way of effective parenting. Tonight was one of those nights. As a busy full time student I normally try my hardest to work on homework during times when Logan is asleep or at his dad’s. Unfortunately, that is not always possible. Some nights the amount of work simply cannot be done without cutting into some mommy time. I had a big presentation for tomorrow. One that I … Continue reading →

Saving Little By Little

As a single parent money is always tight. It’s hard to make ends meet with only one income these days. I’ve mentioned many times in previous blogs that I am currently a full time student. The university I attend is about a 40 minute drive from our home. I was putting 60 miles a day on my car and was driving back and forth five days a week. When I was teaching in the schools I was putting double the miles on my car. Needless to say, I was spending an insane amount of money on gas each week. With … Continue reading →