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Email of the Day: Lessons From a Divorced Mom

Written by Dr. Laura | 2/1/22 9:15 AM

As a single, divorced mom, I got many things wrong. Here are some things I got right, because of you reinforcing what I had been taught as a child:

 

1.  The children are your life. I was in my twenties when I had my sons. I never remarried, and I stopped dating when they were 7 and 8. Seven years later, my youngest told me how glad he was that I didn’t remarry. He hated not having a dad in the house growing up, but he saw how important it was that I put them first.

 

2.  Give structure and keep it. I was a “tough love” mom.

 

3.  Build memories. We went on mini-trips on birthdays and holidays. They still remember.

 

4. Be honest. My boys knew that the life we had was because I had made bad choices. I stressed that I had not been true to my core beliefs, and apologized to them when they could understand. They’ve had very little anger toward me.

 

I also raised them so they knew that what they saw in our home was not the “order” of things. The man should be the breadwinner, and the best choice for the children is to be raised in the home and not in daycare.

 

Adele

Lessons From a Divorced Mom