I love my pieced together family. Most people don’t understand it but as a single mother every single person who has become part of my post divorce family has helped me deal with the stress of being a single parent. Sometimes I forget to be grateful. My sisters are always there for me, I have a best friend who is as close as a sister and other friends, married and single, who help me through the rough spots.
I think it’s important not to let you divorce define you or your family. When I got divorced I felt like Hailey lost half of her family. Suddenly, all those uncles on her father’s side stopped calling. There were no more birthday calls or Christmas cards, it was as if by her parents divorce my daughter ceased to exist for half of her family.
Luckily for us, we have my family and wonderful friends to love and support us. We also have family we have recently gained. I’ve written before about Hailey’s sister Ivy. Ivy’s mom is a single mother of three, including Ivy and we are so very fortunate that it is important to Marlana (Ivy’s mom) that Hailey and Ivy have a relationship. There is a fifteen year age difference so Hailey knows she has to do a lot of hard work to build a relationship with her sister, luckily Marlana helps Hailey do that.
Yesterday we went to Ivy’s first dance recital. It was the cutest thing every, but really, there is not much cuter than three year olds learning how to dance. We are so blessed that Marlana includes us in the important things in Ivy’s life.
Ivy loves her sister, who she calls Jessie for reasons we can’t figure out. She loves to spend the night at our house and we love having her here. I’m so thankful for all the women in my life who make being a single parent easier and I hope that Hailey and I make it just a little easier for Marlana as a single parent. Sometimes, you really need a village, not to raise your children but to surround them with love.