Single Parents

Steve was out of town from Monday morning until late Wednesday night (actually very early Thursday morning), so I was on my own with the boys for three full days.  It went very well but I cannot imagine doing this on my own full time.  Steve is a very hands on father.  I am so happy and thankful that he is.  It just makes it fairly difficult when he is not here for longer periods of time.    Not only on me but on the boys as well.  They are so used to having him be an integral part fo their daily routine that it makes it so obvious for them when he is not here.  They miss him and ask for him constantly.  But how do you explain the concept of a business trip and time line as to when Daddy will be home to 21 month olds?

I honestly do not know how a single parent does it.  I have always respected single parents and I knew that it must be a tough job, but I now have a new appreciation for them.  I understand that they work out of the home and are not with the kids 100% of the time, but it is still a difficult situation.  There is no real down time.  They are on 100% duty, 100% of the time.  When Steve is home, it's not like I am off duty, but I do not need to be 100% responsible.  I was able to do a 30 minute workout with my mp3 player on and not have to check to make sure the boys were not crying (it would not have been likely since they had been asleep for a good 30 minutes).  But, I didn't even need to think about it.  I knew Steve would hear them if they needed us.  As a single parent you would not get that break of having even a little down time.  My hats off to all of the single parents out there that are working hard to provide a great life for their kids....