Becoming a single parent family means changes, some easy and some more challenging. Now that there is just one parent in the household, you want to do everything possible to keep the family close and tight. You want to make sure your children feel comfortable talking to you about anything, that you know what is going on in their lives. Because a single parent home often comes with greater time management challenges, a little more work is required to keep the family together but you can.
I remember when I went through my divorce. There were times when I thought I would never make it but I did. For one thing, we set up family date night. Every Friday night was dedicated to the family. This meant that we went bowling, to the movies, to dinner, to the park for a walk, or even stayed home to play board games. The interesting thing was that our “family” night became so popular that soon, other children whose parents did not have time together would join us. It was a blast!
When we stayed home, we would determine the game or games in most cases, to play. Then, I would make a plate of nachos, pop popcorn, get out the soda, or ice tea, and we would have so much fun. Sometimes when several other kids would come, we would focus more on charades or something like Pictionary. By the end of the night, I usually had a floor of tired bodies that would simply crash at the house. Now that my own children are grown, they still talk about our family date night and how important it was for them.
Another thing we did is have a family meeting. We would set one hour aside every Sunday night to talk about things that were bothering the children in school, questions they had about sexuality, new friends, itineraries, and even disciplinary actions. This hour was the most important time of our single parent home in that the kids always knew they had a safe zone with me – a person to whom they could confide about literally anything. Inn other words, they new I always had their back.
Finally, being a single parent means you have the brunt of the responsibility when it comes to parent/teacher conferences, school carnivals, ballgames, dance, and so on. Obviously, the best option would be for the other child’s parent to participate as well but if this not possible you will need to find ways to make these functions. Yes, it might mean stretching your time thin but in the end, it is well worth the effort.