Search Results for: blog single parents and work

Study: Kids Raised by Single Moms do as Well as Kids Raised by Two Parents

Posted on by

A study that was published by the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology found that children of single mothers are no more likely to suffer later in life than kids raised by a mother and a father “in terms of parent-child relationship or child development.” Researchers from the University of Amsterdam looked at 69 “single-mothers-by-choice.” By that, they meant women who knowingly chose to raise their child alone. The researchers also looked at 59 mothers from heterosexual two-parent families. All of the parents in the study had children between the ages of 1.5 years of age and 6 years … Continue reading →

More Young Adults are Living With Their Parents

Posted on by

Years ago, when the “Baby Boomer” generation was young, it was expected that they would graduate, get married, and start having children in their early 20’s. Today, for the first time in more than 130 years, Americans who are between the ages of 18-34 are more likely to live with their parents than any other living situation. A Pew Research Center analysis gathered data about Americans who are between the ages of 18-34. They found that 32.1% are still living in their parents’ homes. Another 31.6% have moved out of their parents’ homes and are currently living in their own … Continue reading →

Coca-Cola Offers Paid Leave for All Parents

Posted on by

The United States is one of only two countries in the world that does not guarantee paid maternity leave. Fortunately, some companies are stepping in and providing what the federal government has not. Coca-Cola will offer paid leave for all parents. The United States does not provide paid family leave to its workers. There is a U.S. Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) that applies to employers with 50 or more employees. FMLA offers up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave during a 12-month period to care for a newborn, adopted or foster child. Coca-Cola’s paid leave policy will take … Continue reading →

Learning Marriage from Your Parents

I was raised with somewhat progressive views on marriage.  It feels strange to even be typing that, and it’s certainly nothing I ever thought growing up.  I know that on the overall spectrum of views on marriage, the ideals with which I was raised would only be in the middle, and probably closer to the conservative side of the middle.  But it’s still so surprising to me how many people aren’t even that far. I’ve already shared my story about my college roommate.   The reason she and her boyfriend didn’t talk for years about division of labor in the household, … Continue reading →

Single Parents in the Online Dating Scene

For many single parents it seems as if online dating is the only way to meet someone in our current situation. Most single mothers have a very limited amount of time to meet people. If you’re lucky you get every other weekend to yourself, and most of us spend that time doing all the things that we couldn’t do when our children were there during the week. It’s about the only time we can clean something and have it stay clean for more than five minutes so we take advantage of it. Because of our limited amount of time, online … Continue reading →

Single Parenting is Not Glamorous

Posted on by

I’ve read many studies that say the rise in single parenting is also influencing the rise in teenage pregnancy. To many young girls single parenting looks glamorous, from the outside. Teenage girls who can’t wait to get away from their parents see pregnancy as an out and when they see lots of women raising their kids alone, they think it’s not a big deal. Not only is single parenting a big deal, single, teenage parenting is a huge deal. Many times the single mothers they see are established in their careers, they have a strong financial base, they also have … Continue reading →

Depression Among Single Parents

Most single parents experience some form of depression at one time or another throughout their parenting career. What may have begun as sadness may have developed into something far greater. There are times when extreme emotional trauma can throw your body into an extreme chemical imbalance. This isn’t your fault; it is your body’s response to the chaos going on around you. Depression is more than just a deep sadness at your situation. Most of us aren’t thrilled at our circumstances as a single parent, but when you are depressed you may feel consumed by that sadness. You may feel … Continue reading →

Happy Parents

Posted on by

A recent study shows that people with children are happier than people without. Older and married parents are the happiest. Does this apply to single parents? I know it applies for me. There are days when I daydream about not being responsible for anyone but myself but the flip side of that is how empty my days would be without Hailey. While I don’t think people who don’t have children lead empty lives, I do think they miss out on a lot. I wouldn’t trade on home made Mothers Day card for a year of alone time. Yes, parenting, especially … Continue reading →

Single Parent = Child Abuse and Neglect

Most of the time I consider myself a sane and rational human being, I would like to think that most of the time the rest of the world is sane and rational as well. Especially the people who write our laws, I want them to be intelligent and compassionate, I want them to look out for children, but I don’t want them to write laws that will point the finger at me because I am a single parent. Today I am not rational at all, as a matter of fact I am quite livid. Wisconsin State Senator Glenn Grotham has … Continue reading →

Sandwich Generation

Just when you think you are getting the hang of this single parent thing, you may find yourself right in the middle of another challenge- taking care of your aging parents. Welcome to the Sandwich Generation as a single parent. Many of us put off having children until we were older, whether by chance or by choice, we are older parents. This is in our favor if we get divorced. Generally because we are older our careers are more established, our income is higher and we have access to more resources than we would have when we were young. All … Continue reading →