Parenting as a Christian Single Dad

The difference between fun at the age 3 and lets just say 30 something can be very different.

Over the weekend I bought Madalyn a bike helmet and it came with elbow and knee pads, they are pretty much useless because they are to small but Madalyn thinks the knee pads are pretty cool. "Why?" you ask well now she can be like daddy and scrub the floor on her hands and knees like me.

She was able to really get a chuckle out of me when her mom came over and she showed her the new knee pads. Mom said, "cool are those so you can ride your bike?" Madalyn looked at her mom, a little puzzled, and said, "No for cleaning the floor." Okay so now mom gives me this weird look and I just said, "somebody has too."

I'm sorry but that just busted me up. To Madalyn it was cool to help me wash the floors. I know it won't last but it is cute.

Recently my parenting style has been under fire by my ex. I understand the need for good communication and consistency for Madalyn but the issues that are being brought to my attention seem relatively minor.

I guess to begin with I really don’t have a parenting style… I am doing the best I can and most of it is shooting from the hip. Like a lot of people out there I work full time and work hard to provide for my kid. I make mistakes each and every day but I try.

The past few weeks Madalyn’s mom has not been around much. Madalyn has been living with me full-time and I am truly blessed. During this time “mom” has taken Madalyn to a couple places where her behavior was inappropriate and I got all the blame. Apparently she acted the way she did because of how I interact with her and parent her, at least that is what mom said.

Incident (1) – They were at church and Madalyn was grabbing at a gentleman’s pants. Granted maybe not the best thing she should be doing yet the way I got it was I am to blame because of how I horse around with her. “WHATEVER!” I remember Madalyn doing that to a salesman at the store when I bought my camera. She grabbed his leg and was hiding from me. It startled both of us but I dealt with it and that was it…

Incident (2) – They went to dinner and Madalyn would not sit down and eat. She bothered others and embarrassed mom. Boy don’t I know it. This is one reason why Madalyn and I don’t eat out much. She has a tendency to not be able to sit still. Her and I are working on this and she has gotten better because she knows there will be consequences. Yet the way I got is was it was my fault because I don’t have enough dinnertime structure at home. Like I said before I try and it always seems like there is something that needs to get done so I cram all I can in the time I have. Yes, I eat and watch about 27 minutes of television at the same time. I could use some dinner time and eating out tips if anyone has any.

Honestly, I don’t know how to take it. I am tired of being blamed for everything, yet I should be used to it. I think Madalyn is a wonderful 3 year old little girl. She does have areas that I want to improve on but she is a darn good kid, most of the time. And I think I am doing the best that I can and I really don’t think I should be criticized by a person whom takes part in her daughters life on an inconsistent basis.

It seems oil prices are continually hitting new highs. It seems like just yesterday they were $50 a barrel, now they are closer to $140. Someone is making money and all I know for sure it is not me.

Luckily I don’t have to do a lot of travel with Madalyn. All the parks and pools we could ever need are within walking distance but I still do feel the sting of high gas prices. I have seen some stories out there of people conserving fuel and getting the most per gallon, some of which I don’t think are very safe.

Here are some tips to save money at the pump that I have found to be most useful.

1. Lighten the load in the car, get rid of unnecessary weight that weighs the car down.
2. I use the cheapest gas possible.
3. Use gas rewards cards and take advantage of the savings they offer.
4. Cut back on driving.
5. Plan your trips using Google Maps to cut out unnecessary driving. Develop the most efficient route.

Madalyn just went to her mom's and the quietness is good and bad. It was kind of funny because she was itching to go. She has been with me for 3 weeks straight and I think she was in the mood to get away. She telling her mom, "lets go". It was like if they did not leave right away then they may not leave together. Actually, that may be the case with her mom... You never know.

Anyhow here is a song to keep things rockin! Place your cursor over the play button and left click.

Sorry, I had to remove the song because to listen to it the computer needed to be authorized...
Maybe next time.

Things have been going exremely well lately. God has answered my prayers and I am spending a considerable more time with Madalyn. It has been a blessing even though I am unable to get things done. I must admit I don't know how you single moms do it. I think I have read somewhere that woman are much better multi-taskers than men. There may be some truth in that... :-)