Question to those who have full custody... sosad05: Hello...I am exhausted. I love my children more than life but it just isnt fair. Every night I have to do everything...alone. I have to deal with screaming and fighting because they dont what this/that for dinner. I have to deal with crying because they dont want to go to bed. I have to deal with complaining bc my house isnt as big and fun as daddy's house. I feel like I have to overcompensate for the lack of involvement from their dad. I have to attend every school function, help with every piece of homework, take them to every dr visit....he gets to do the fun stuff. He cant take them on his next visitation day because he and OW have a concert to attend. Must be nice. In addition, I pay for everything. Thats nothing new though.
Do you ever just feel like giving up? I hurt. Its not fair. I want someone to HELP me for just one day.
I am trying to balance work, graduate school, and being a parent. I feel like Im falling apart.
Re: Question to those who have full custody... JNA: I cannot imagine doing what you do...
I'm sorry you have to parent on your own
I have shared with my ex and it works out great...Then we have my Dad that has them every Friday night...
I have no piece of advice to give other that to say
Stay Strong
In time your kids will realize (when they are older) who "Loved" them...
JNA
Kids are simple...They just want love and attention...
Who for your kids is providing that...
Win...Win for you in the long run ok
Re: Question to those who have full custody... freovir: you don't say how many children you have or their ages, but i have two (6 AND 8) and i know that it does get easier. i can't imagine having to do this when they were say 2 and 4, or eve 4 and 6.
i would recommend that you set a schedule and stick to it. simple thing that break up the monotony really help. We have friday night movie/game night and tuesdays we go to the public library. it's something to look forward to.
hang in there.
--fre
Re: Question to those who have full custody... alonewith2: It is a tough job being a single parent. I've basically been doing it for 7 years now, and it hasn't gotten any easier.
What Fre suggested does help. Having a routine, but with some fun things thrown in, really helps. My kids and I have movie night, Patrick gets to make dinner night (yeah, that one's fun...), family jam with the band night, and others...
Besides the fun stuff, it really helped to have a set bedtime and dinner time. The bedtime was really important for me because it helped me through the stressful days to know that salvation time (alone time) was coming up soon.... ;)
It doesn't take away the loneliness or the overwhelming sense of being stretched into 5 million pieces, but it does help.
Re: Question to those who have full custody... freovir: ohhh, AW2, is dead on with bed time. . . earlier the better!! eight o'clock used to be ours, but i've bumped it to about nine. i can understand parents who keep their kids up late.
speaking of sleep, i just heard on NPR that studies show kids should be getting at least 10-13 hours of sleep a night. i like this study.
oh and chores. my girls alternate the entryway and the livingroom and they have to make their beds every day. i think if you instill a sense of responsibility and ownership in the kids they will respond. Is this always easy? hell, is it ever, but it is well worth the effort in my opinion.
--fre
--fre
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