You are in Charge of YOUR Feelings

Kids are a handful. If you’re a single mom, you know that all too well. While my son and I have a very close relationship, there are times when he makes me want to rip my hair out. He’s four, that happens sometimes, it’s in their nature to misbehave and test their boundaries here and there. I have found myself saying, “Logan you are making Mommy really frustrated right now!” However, I realized just how wrong I really was. Yes, I am extremely frustrated with his behavior, but ultimately I am the one choosing to feel frustrated. He can’t “make” … Continue reading

Keeping Our Kids Safe

As a parent, we always worry that something will happen to our children. We try to anticipate any situation they could be in that could be harmful and help them avoid it. We give them tools to keep themselves safe. Sadly sometimes, it’s not enough. When you are a single parent keeping your child safe becomes even more of a challenge. Due to only being one person and having to work, you are not able to supervise as much as you would like to, you can’t always be there, just a shout away if they need you. Recently in my … Continue reading

Our Kids Need More Exercise

Are your kids active enough? We all need exercise every day, do your kids get enough? I was always concerned about Hailey’s activity level after I got divorced. When I was married we lived in a house in a nice neighborhood, I knew my neighbors, Hailey knew the kids, we had lived there since she was three. I felt safe letting her go outside to play with other kids. Once I got divorced that changed. We lived in a series of apartments and although they were always in what I felt where good areas, I didn’t feel safe letting her … Continue reading

Putting Your Feelings Aside

My little brother opened his LDS mission call tonight. For those of you unfamiliar with this custom, it is a huge milestone in the lives of these young men. They prepare from the time they are little boys for this moment. It takes a tremendous amount of hard work and dedication and is a momentous occasion in their lives. Sadly, my brother’s father chose not to attend this special event. He was too bitter about a divorce that happened nearly fifteen years ago to come to an event where his ex-wife, our mother, would be present. My brother puts on … Continue reading

Would You Share Your Breastmilk?

I have finally found peace with the fact that I’m no longer breastfeeding, but at the same time, I have moments where I still feel sad. I’m sure that is perfectly normal. Today at the park, I saw a mom breastfeeding, and couldn’t help but long for that a little. This weekend, we went to a family event, and I saw another mom with a baby just a week older than my own who was nursing. I couldn’t help but look at her and have mixed emotions. On one hand, I was grateful to not feel self conscience about nursing … Continue reading

Our Broken Family Tree

As Memorial Day approaches I have spent a lot of time thinking about those that have gone on before me. I have always had a very close family and have fond memories of spending time with both my grandparents and great-grandparents as a child; the latter of which have since moved on. It is often difficult to look at a family tree that has since been broken by divorce. My son’s family tree isn’t quite as clean cut as I would like it to be. It gets rather complicated after about the first branch, but I still want to be … Continue reading

Parenting Your Strong-Willed Child

This week I have come to the conclusion that I have the most stubborn child on the face of the planet. Ok, not really, but it certainly feels like it. We’ve had more than our fair share of power struggles this week. Unfortunately, he got stuck with an equally stubborn mother, so he can’t win, but that’s not going to stop him from trying. Does this sound familiar to you? There are times when having a strong-willed child may feel like a curse. They can definitely be a handful at times, especially when they are little, but they often grow … Continue reading

Have You Supersized Your Expectations?

Go into any fast food drive through and you will be asked if you want to “supersize” your order, to get just a little bit more than what you were originally expecting. The problem is that those supersized meals can lead to fat belly and a skinny wallet. When we want to save money or live within our means, we talk a lot about the opposite, downsizing. This could be anything from cutting back on the number of times per week that we eat out to moving into a smaller home. Downsizing things can certainly save money. But, if you … Continue reading

When Children Are Violent

Could your child become violent or aggressive towards you? I don’t think there is a parent in the world who could look at their young child and think that one day he or she would be violent towards them. Sadly, this is becoming more and more common. Children are becoming violent and the person who is taking the brunt of that violence is their parent. Some children quickly learn how to manipulate and control their parents and that can lead to more aggressive behavior when they are older. The very people who love a child are the ones the child … Continue reading

Take Back Your Power

I’m so grateful that the stigma of being a single mother is gone. Wouldn’t it be terrible to be a single mother in the 30’s or 40’s? Even if you were single through death instead of divorce, at that time you would have been an anomaly, your children would have been viewed differently, there wouldn’t have been anyone who understands what you’re going through. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, there are many single mothers today and we have a wealth of resources available to. It is much easier to be a single mother today than … Continue reading