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Being a Single Parent is All About Strategy
When you are a single parent people will often say things like, “I don’t know how you do it.”
It’s strategy.
You have to be strategic about everything. There’s no one to tag you out.
I purposefully picked an apartment where I can see or hear everything from the couch. So if I’m sick I can rest while still supervising them.
I’m studying bookkeeping, even though it’s boring, because it’s something flexible I can potentially do from home. I’m lucky and have quite a bit of help when we’re all healthy. When we’re sick the majority of my help disappears. I have no backup childcare if they have to stay home sick.
Most outings are planned in advance, ideally to somewhere with a bathroom where me and both kids can all go in together. There’s no one to watch the kids if I need the bathroom while we’re out. And until recently my oldest refused to use automatic toilets, so there was a lot of research before we went somewhere new.
If the weather’s super nice I will sometimes go out spur of the moment. I’m not totally boring.
I have a big enough stroller that both kids can ride. Often just the youngest will ride while I use the rest of the stroller to carry groceries. Hauling stuff from place to place would be nearly impossible…
