The inspiration for this post comes from notSupermum who has written a fabulous post on single parenting which lists the positive side of raising children up on your own. The positives include being able to set the rules as the only adult in the house, being able to take all the credit when your child(ren) are praised for good behaviour, and my particular favourites: have a conflict-free household and an amazing bond with your child(ren).
There is rarely any conflict in our house, and when there is, it is resolved quickly because it is between myself and a six-year-old, and we know each other well enough to be able to sit down and talk things through once the initial tension has passed.
It is exhausting at times, especially in the evenings or when I'm ill and there's no-one else to help out. Going out is a constant problem as there is rarely anyone to babysit. But this is all made worthwhile by the fact that the two of us have a really close mother-daughter bond which I have certainly never experienced before.Rather than single parents creating problem children for the future, as some sources like to suggest, I'm pretty certain that I'm creating a little individual who will feel loved and supported for the rest of her life. And sometimes two parents can't even achieve that.
Other single parent blogs worth checking out include:
Single Parent Dad- father of 5 year old Max
notSupermum - Mum to two daughters
Jo Beaufoix - single mum to two girls, aged 4 and 6Being Mum Being Me - a divorced mum of two young children
Half Mum Half Biscuit - a forty-something single mum to a six-year-old boy
I Promise that I Will Do My Best - Tawny's blog, mum to a ten-year-old daughter
Nunhead Ramblings - Mum of one, wife of one, living in Nunhead
Diary of a Surprise Mum - diary of a 30-something mum
Nixd Minx - a single mum of one trying to balance it all
Stigmum - a single mum proving we are not all bad
Blethering again - by a single mum and born worrier
West of the Pennines - Thirty-something newly single mum
One with, One without - Tracy's blog, mum to two boys, one with autism, one without
Indigo Doll - Mum to two children, aged four and five
Secret Diaries of a Wannabe Yummy Mammy - a stressed single mum residing in Ireland
Musings of a Busy Mum - Helen's blog, single mum in charge of three children
A Little Space for Me - Stay-at-home-mum to two young boys
Single Mother on the Verge - Maria's blog is also a book - published by Penguin!
Let me know which blogs I have accidently missed off, there are bound to be many.
Thanks Rosie for putting this together. What a great idea. Lots of blogs I didn't know about. I'm off to check them out!
Posted by: Half Mum Half Biscuit | September 20, 2009 at 08:41 PM
Thanks HM, HB! I'm received some positive emails, and discovered a few new blogs myself.
Posted by: Rosie Scribble | September 21, 2009 at 11:00 AM
Thanks Rosie, have added a few to my reader.
Posted by: Erica | September 21, 2009 at 11:15 AM
Wow, thanks for linking to my blog, what a surprise to see it up there with some I already read and some I didn't (I've added the whole lot to my feed reader now!)
With three children, I seem to fail at the no conflict part of single parenthood - I try to enforce 'no shouting' rules (and that includes me, which is hard!) but somehow we all seem to fall out rather too often. We're working on it... :-)
Thank you for providing me with a whole lot more reading material; I'm still learning at this single mum lark and the more I can benefit from others' experience, the better!
Posted by: Helen P | September 21, 2009 at 08:34 PM
Helen, I'm not sure I'd manage at all well with three children. You must
need the patience of a saint, and I'm not even close to that! Great to hear
you have found some more blogs you like.
On Mon, Sep 21, 2009 at 8:34 PM, wrote:
Posted by: Rosie Scribble | September 21, 2009 at 09:32 PM
Oh! I'm so pleased to have seen this - thanks so much for the mention....you're very kind *blushes*
The list of blogs is interesting, I'm off to read them as there are some I've never come across before. Thanks.
Btw, I don't seem to be able to follow your blog - where's your follower thingy? (technical term...)
Posted by: NotSupermum | September 21, 2009 at 10:47 PM
Wow thanks so much for the link! I'm off to have a look at these and add you all to my reader.
I wish I could talk more candidly on my blog about things, but as my ex and his family (along with my own) all read it I have to be careful about what I say, which kind of sucks. :(
Thanks again for this list - just what I needed to find some more single parent blogs - and british ones at that! :)
Posted by: Marylin | September 23, 2009 at 02:05 PM
ooo I have a single parent blog. single mother on the verge, it's a book too! (Penguin)
I'm going to check out these blogs and add them to mine that is a great idea x
Posted by: Maria Roberts | September 23, 2009 at 05:15 PM
Thanks, Maria. I've added you to the list!
On Wed, Sep 23, 2009 at 5:15 PM, wrote:
Posted by: Rosie Scribble | September 23, 2009 at 06:23 PM
Hi, I really enjoyed reading your article and strongly believe your child will turn out to be a great woman as you have the correct attitude and approach on things. If you would like to more advice and tips on single parenting please visit Single Parent Center. Good luck with the little one and keep up the great work.
Posted by: Catherine Gouws | December 08, 2010 at 07:05 AM