Since having a baby, several times my hubby and I have looked at each other and said, how to single parents do it? Raising a baby is a hard, full time, 24-hr a day job, a job where you need support, both mental and physical. I've gained so much respect for people who are managing having a baby on their own. It's a tough job.
Over the last few days the hubby has had a really nasty case of the flu, not man-flu, but proper can't-get-out-of-bed flu, which has left me doing everything - looking after Squidge while he's going through a very tough spell, keeping the house ticking over, looking after the hubby, and me. It's been a really tough few days, and I've got through it with the support of the hubby's parents - Squidge and I spent a lot of time at their house so I could have some help with him, as he's not exactly a happy baby at the moment - and I just kept thinking, how do single parents do this - I mean, if the mum or dad with the baby has the flu, they still have to look after the baby. Then I got thinking, what if they don't have family or friends they can lean on in times of need - it just really got me thinking about how incredibly lucky we are to have such wonderful family, and each other.
If there are any single parents reading this, I commend you! I also wanted to highlight a fantastic charity for single parents called Gingerbread - they offer help and advice on all aspects of being a single parent, from helping with budgeting, providing advice, training and practical support. I think it's important to know that you're never alone, that's something I've come to realise from going to my weekly mummy club - so many other mummies have had similar birth experiences, and the same struggles with their babies, like having their nights and days mixed up (the babies, not the parents :P), colic, teething etc, and other struggles we may not know about.
When it's just you and your baby, it can feel very lonely, I really cannot recommend enough getting out and going to these mummy clubs - the babies love it (Squidge LOVES looking at other babies) and it's lovely for us mummies. I'm very lucky in that I have a fantastic mummy club, it's every Thursday from 1:00 - 2:30/3pm and only £1 to go, and for that the mummies get a cup of tea and a biscuit, babies who are weaning get a little bit of fruit - and the babies get a big square area with play gyms and toys - groups like this don't need to be expensive, so even if you're on a very tight budget you might be able to find a group for you :)
Sorry for this post being a bit of a brain-dump-miss-match :)
I know what you mean! I'm not a single parent but non of our families (mine and my hubby's) are not close to us, so basically we are always alone with our boys. There are days that I feel super exhausted because my job as mummy is 24/7 with no break at all. Just couple of times a year when my mum visits us I can get a bit of breather and we can go out for a dinner or to the cinema without children. It's tough but I wouldn't change it for the world :) I agree about the mummy-baby groups, I used to go a lot when my first son was a baby. x
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Aww, it's hard work isn't it? We're lucky that we have family so close by and that want to be really involved with Squidge - the days when it's just me can be really hard - wonderful at the same time, but hard. It must be tough not having family close by :(
ReplyDeleteSingle parents do not get enough credit. I am very lucky to have such a supportive partner and parents. I know I am going to need them a lot for support. x
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