Solo Mom: Number 1000!

The journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step.

For me, that step was just about three years ago. I had suddenly found myself a single mother to a newborn who apparently needed NO sleep, and a four-year-old starting kindergarten, while adjusting to a new baby brother and a divorce.

My son will never know life before divorce, but my daughter was devastated, thinking she was an outcast – “the only kid in the world whose mommy and daddy don’t live together.” To show her she wasn’t alone, I sought out support, and found it in Single Parents of the Triangle, also called SPOT.

Our first event was the group’s holiday party, and when another member offered (insisted, really, but in a good way) to hold my baby so I could eat – sitting down, with two hands – I was hooked! At the time, I had been looking for support for my daughter, but have found amazing friendships for myself and my son as well. My little family has grown up in this much larger family of other single parents and children.

Fast forward to now, I have been running the group for almost two years, and we are about to celebrate our 1000th event! It seems like we are always on the go – doing everything from visiting parks and museums to celebrating member birthdays and accomplishments, sporting events, movies, dinners, concerts, etc. You name it, we’ve done it – or we will if a member suggests it!

In practice, we are a social organization. But at heart, we are a group of supportive friends who share a common bond – single parenthood. This group was amazingly supportive to me when I needed it most – and that reached far beyond holding my baby. There’s a certain kind of emotional support you can only get from those who have “been there, done that.”

When situations were at their most stressful, I could always find someone who could reassure me, from their own experience, that things would get better. And when I had something to celebrate, someone was always there to help with that too!