Dealing with a Disneyland Dad

If you’ve been coming to Singlemommyhood recently, you’ve probably run across a comment by Fred Campos, from Daddy Got Custody. Although you most likely know him as @FullCustodyDad
When we recently wrote about “My kid returns home dirty. Help!” we heard from many of you who deal with an ex who is more like [...]

My kid returns home dirty. Help!

Many parents tell us about a similar dilemma: after a weekend with the ex, your kids come home very differently from how they left. You’ve shared tales of lost shoes, mismatched clothes, never brushed teeth, hopelessly tangled hair — and just downright smelly kids leave us shaking our heads.
Do you also share this co-parenting challenge, [...]

When a no show parent break promises

We receive a lot of e-mails from you about “no show parents.”

Here’s the most recent:
“My ex-husband got all the parenting time he requested — it was part of our divorce agreement and I was all for it. Our kids adore him.”
“But here’s the problem: he’s very irresponsible. More than half of the time, he doesn’t [...]

Need some kid vacation tips?

Are you sending your child off this summer, on his/her own? (Or, maybe you already have?).
Perhaps your child is going away for summer camp? Or, to the “other parent’s” home? Or, maybe to visit relatives in another state?
So, how can you help your kids be prepared? (As some of you might know, Rachel at Single [...]

Different functional? We love it.

We’re always on the look out for children’s books that address our families, and we’re very excited about this new find:
Author Lori Hillard once searched, like us, for a book to share with her young son about the real changes in their family life after his parents’ divorce.
Lori found the usual teddy bears and other [...]

When Dad is a no show

What do you do when Dad doesn’t call or show up for parenting time?
Thanks, Wonder Mom, for calling our attention to a dilemma that many single moms share.
Wonder Mom is right: her situation is very common. Here’s how it usually plays out:
“My ex has a generous parenting time schedule. The trouble is, he can be [...]

If your kids are stressed at parenting time

Although there are different legal ways to describe child custody, nearly all custody arrangements include “parenting time” or “visitation”.
In short, this means the set schedule between the parent with residential custody and the parent (or former partner) who does not. Of course, some parents have a 50/50 custody split. For those of us who are [...]

When wedding bells (not yours!) are ringing

CoastalGal99 wrote us recently with some unsettling news:
“My eight-year-old daughter came home from her dad’s this weekend and announced, ‘Daddy is getting married!’
I didn’t even know that he had a girlfriend! My daughter explained that she was introduced to ‘Daddy’s new wife.’
But she asked me if she should call her ‘Mommy,’ too.
Later that night, [...]