Anybody a Single Parent here?

cr00kednz
cr00kednz Posts: 15
edited September 30 in Motivation and Support
Just wondering. I'm from North Canterbury, New Zealand, been at this about four weeks now...... going OK.... but would like to be "going better" than this, haha. Tis pretty up and down, alcohol on weekends is my biggest issue, particularly since the earthquakes started last year. I have two children, am 31, have been a single parent almost 12 years now. I originally started on this because I was on another online forum but it feels like I'm being left out - don't want to sound like the "wah-wah poor me!" person though LOL. Just that most in the group are single with no kids or have spouses. I don't know any other single parents who want a lifestyle change to be able to introduce them to MFP and join me.

Was wondering if there were any other single parents out there in the MFP world? :o)

D.
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Replies

  • Rainbow_Brite86
    Rainbow_Brite86 Posts: 313
    I'm a single parent :D
  • monicainacoma
    monicainacoma Posts: 84 Member
    I'm a single mother of a 7 year old girl. She is my life and I love her endlessly, but it does make it a little difficult to diet. I would love to have more single mama's to chat with on here. Feel free to add me. :-)
  • tiggersstar
    tiggersstar Posts: 193 Member
    i am a single parent in the uk, my daughter is now 15 and snotty with it! lol. i work full time and spend the rest of my time looking after her and 1 dog and 4 cats. i decided last year that it was time to stop comfort eating and try and get myself back. its been a bit of a struggle, but i am getting there! lol

    :flowerforyou:
  • fionarama
    fionarama Posts: 788 Member
    hi! I'm a Kiwi too but I live in the UK. I'm a de facto single parent because my husband works away alot. It makes it much harder because you are limited as to when you can get out and go to the gym, my little one is too small to do more than go for a walk with me .Have found giving up alcohol (which is better anyway when you are the sole childcarer most of the time, better for LO) helps an enormous amount in losing weight, it really is an uphill battle if you still want to indulge in the odd Lindaur!
    The earthquakes must have been so stressful for everyone, no wonder tho if you need a drink every now and again!
    So sorry I'm not truly a single parent but I probably get you more than most as I know how hard it is, you never EVER get time to yourself between work and being a mum and trying to diet and exercise can often be the hardest thing when there are so many other things to worry about.
  • Luvlicious
    Luvlicious Posts: 15
    Single mama here! And in the military >.< I'm 28 with a 6yr old boy and 9 month old baby girl. Both the love of my life but man did I gain loads of weight each pregnancy! I just started yesterday...I like MFP so far...a lot. My biggest thing is I love to eat...weather I'm happy or sad I love to eat lol. Then for a while I felt guilty dropping off my little ones in day care so early so I can work out. Now, I realize I have to take care of me so I can take care of them :D I still feel guilty but it's getting better now. How are you doing?
  • leeanndelcourt
    leeanndelcourt Posts: 28 Member
    Single Parent here, too:) I have 4 kiddos....I've been a single mom for a little over 3 years. Add me as a friend and we can encourage one another!
  • faithfitnessandnutrition
    faithfitnessandnutrition Posts: 101
    Single mom here to a 16 year old, have been since she was 6. :) she is a great kid and proud to say she is adopting the healthy lifestyle with me. She runs track and cross country and has started reading labels on food and not eating as much sweets. But she still loves her frosted flakes.. :):)
  • Beachbean77
    Beachbean77 Posts: 83 Member
    Single mom here! I'm 33 and have 2 daughters ages 9 & 5 ... have been single almost 3 years now. I've been a member of MFP since about January or February and it's been slow going for me but I think i'm learning better that way. And teaching my daughters about healthy eating choices. So welcome to MFP and hope you enjoy it here!!
  • jend114
    jend114 Posts: 1,058 Member
    I'm a single mom
  • crisanderson27
    crisanderson27 Posts: 5,343 Member
    I was a single Dad to my daughter from 11mos to 7yrs old. At that point, I met a girl I thought I was going to be with forever, had two more kids...

    And now six and a half years later, I'm a single Dad again. 13, 5, and 4yrs old. It's no fun, but I love my little ones dearly, and there is no part of my life I wouldn't (and...haven't...you know how it is) give up for them. As an added kick, their mom moved 800 miles away when she left...so it really is just us.
  • NotGoddess
    NotGoddess Posts: 1,198 Member
    I'm from the US and a single mom to four fantastic boys ages 7-14. Feel free to add me as a friend.
  • cr00kednz
    cr00kednz Posts: 15
    Hey, awesome! Loving the posts so far! I'm actually up a bit late, tis 12.02am here right now,haha.

    But if any of you would like to "friend" me on here, go for it. I'm lucky in that I have a fantastic close family, but I'm having to face the reality that if I want to take this seriously, I am going to have to pay a babysitter to look after my children (12 and 6 very soon) so I can go out and do a proper walk. I even want to do the Couch to 5k programme, but again, work and kids limit that. However, family also limits that, which drives me nuts..... my parents are very close by and tell me I don't need to hire a babysitter (which I cannot afford to anyway unless they're happy with $5 an hour LOL) but never seem willing to do it even two or three nights a week. Grrrrrrr. I also have to work. It sometimes feels like my mother is putting up barriers in my way, even though she says I'm doing fantastic, but if I ask.....? Yeah.... lol. Aarrrrrgh!

    I've also been doing 15-min workouts, on DVD, but it's not enough.

    Sorry to whinge. I'm frustrated, I've had a 700gm gain this week as of this morning (the "official" weigh in which I'm seriously considering changing to friday morning NZT). Doesn't sound bad but I'm frustrated about it because I had MORE opportunity to do something, i.e go for longer walks, more opportunity to do more 15min workouts, etc.

    I'm 5'2", now 90.8kg - up from 90.1kg this morning last week - was 94kg when I first started MFP about four weeks ago.

    *whinge whinge* haha
  • cr00kednz
    cr00kednz Posts: 15
    Also, I have a daughter (six next week) who is so damaged that.... sorry...... I laughed and made her CRY (bad, bad mum!), that she is currently sitting in my lap and I jerked quickly because she.... ahem...... farted on my lap. That's my daughter for you, full of hot air LOL>

    Bloody quakes. Things are quiet here at the moment but the psychological impact is so great that everybody is waiting for the next big one. *sigh*

    Sorry..... needed that laugh though!!!!!! *suppresses chuckle so not to make girl cry again*
  • crisanderson27
    crisanderson27 Posts: 5,343 Member
    Give your older child a babysitting class....and slowly work into short walks or other forms of exercises where you are close by, but can do your own thing. My daughter is VERY good aboutminding her two younger brothers so I can get things done in the garage or the like. It's a precious luxury...and one I know what it's like to be without. For the first seven years of her life, I had no one to watch her except for work.
  • foodfight247
    foodfight247 Posts: 767 Member
    Hi, can't really class me as a single parent, but, when my son was 36 mths, my then partner decided to move out of home. He still saw our son every day though as we tried to keep things as stable as possible for his sake. The only difference was that his dad wasn't at home at night...Two years later, as things calmed down, we decided to try just one last time to save our relationship. We ended up moving to a completely new area, changing schools and relocating work - ALOT of stress.

    From the moment we moved into the new house, it was obvious it wasn't going to work. Still we tried for our son, but just recently, we made the decision to split. However, my son was settled at school, work was doing ok, we'd met new people, etc...the only thing not working was our relationship. We talked things through and we both agreed that instead of uprouting our son from the house he was settled in, he should stay there with his dad as normal and I would move out. I still fulfil my motherly duties. I drop him off at school in the morning, pick him up, have tea, homework etc. Then his dad picks him up from mine. Weekends, my son is with me and during that time, I try to do lots of fun activities with him and give him as much one on one as I can. The only difference is he stays up at the main house with his dad on a night. Our son is fine with this and it hasn't seemed to bother him too much. We've tried to keep things as stable as possible without fully uprouting him after such a stressful move and a very tense year. The only sacrifice is my relationship with his dad. I'd rather put my son first though than let him live in an environment where mum and dad are not happy.

    Every step of the way there has always been support from his dad, so I guess in someways you can't regard me as a single parent, even during the times, my son lived just with me.

    It's his 6th birthday at the end of month - how time flys.
  • foodfight247
    foodfight247 Posts: 767 Member
    I was a single Dad to my daughter from 11mos to 7yrs old. At that point, I met a girl I thought I was going to be with forever, had two more kids...

    And now six and a half years later, I'm a single Dad again. 13, 5, and 4yrs old. It's no fun, but I love my little ones dearly, and there is no part of my life I wouldn't (and...haven't...you know how it is) give up for them. As an added kick, their mom moved 800 miles away when she left...so it really is just us.

    You have you're hands full....All three are at difficult ages...4 & 5 yr olds are certainly a handful!! Believe me - my son will be 6yrs at the end of the month. Sadly I lost a second child in 2007, another son, he would have been 4yrs this coming September. Bless him..

    You have to be an amazing dad to look after three children on your own.. You deserve loads of credit for what you have accomplished and they will love you loads for it!

    Hold strong for your children and have fun in the process.
  • Rainbow_Brite86
    Rainbow_Brite86 Posts: 313
    I am a single mother with 2 boys. One is almost 5 and the other is 3 1/2 years old. :-) Add me if you like :D
  • sailingsal
    sailingsal Posts: 285 Member
    HI,
    I'm a single parent too. I have a 10 year old boy. We live in Scotland.
    Trying to lose weight and get fitter, so i'm more able to play and swim with my son.
  • tdotali
    tdotali Posts: 181 Member
    I'm a single mom in Toronto to an almost 3 yr old boy.
    I try to workout in the mornings but it's much easier when he's at his dad's. I'm always afraid he's going to wake up and encircle my legs while I'm trying to do lunges lol!
    Add me if you'd like :)
  • TheMaidOfAstolat
    TheMaidOfAstolat Posts: 3,222 Member
    Single mom here. Divorced in February of this year...yet I raised my daughter practically by myself. My ex was never really involved in raising her, only being a friend.

    I am lucky that she is pretty laid back and will read or watch some tv so I can get in a workout. She helps me cook and clean and take care of our doggies. She'll be 8 this year and while I am raising her on my own I am happy that I can do it on my own and it will only benefit my daughter in the long run.

    I know this will be a long and tough road...I just hope I can meet others in the same situation. Right now my daughter is in a private school...In her class one set of parents have re-married (the only divorced parents except me) and their is one single mom other than me because her husband died of a heart attack when their daughter was only 2. I am very much an outsider and it doesn't help that I am about 10 years younger than all of them, lol.
  • Myslissa
    Myslissa Posts: 760 Member
    I have raised a set of twins that will soon be twenty and a son that will be 14 next month alone. It is hard at times but it does get easier. You can always involve the kids in your exercise. Childrens games are work when you get older. LOL.
  • Heatherbelle_87
    Heatherbelle_87 Posts: 1,078 Member
    Single mom of a 2 year old here. His sperm donor has never been involved I actually had his rights sealed so he cant psychologically mess with my child later on. Being a single working mom is definently a balancing act with weight loss/gym time!
  • cr00kednz
    cr00kednz Posts: 15
    Hey thanks for all the replies!! And the new MFP friends. :o)

    Hope you all are going well today. I haven't been able to get out walking like I wanted to. The installation of the new fire took longer than I thought and now I'm working - doh! So I'm going to try and do half an hour workout later tonight, once kids are asleep.

    Have a good Hump Day everybody. :o)
  • Maria_81
    Maria_81 Posts: 152
    Hi there, single of a 6 year old daughter.
  • giammarcor
    giammarcor Posts: 217 Member
    I'm a single parent, but my daughter is 26. So, technically I probably don't fit into the category. But, I did raise her alone from when she was 5, so that has to count for something.
  • lprunty
    lprunty Posts: 108
    I am a single parent. I live in CO in the US. I have 3 kiddos. Two of which live with me full time. :-)
  • lprunty
    lprunty Posts: 108
    Oh and feel free to add me! I've only been on MFP for a couple days. I'm liking it much better than the other programs I've used.
  • 44isthenew29
    44isthenew29 Posts: 141
    Single parent here, just north of Toronto. Two daughters, 15 and 18. Been on my own a long time. When they were little, their Dad would watch them while I was at the gym, or I just worked out at home. DVD's and stationary bike. My eldest would get down on the floor with me and do abs. :)
  • aegira
    aegira Posts: 201 Member
    Yep, single mum of 2 (girl and boy) from Australia and have been for 14.5 years. It hasn't been easy but it has been an adventure, they are both Uni students, still at home and I still support them to some degree but nowadays I can come and go as I please, so it really is time for me.
  • tigerbluefly
    tigerbluefly Posts: 257 Member
    Hi! Single mom of 15 year old girl and 7 year old boy.
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