Idle time with the kids

“He who receives an idea from me, receives instruction himself without lessening mine; as 
he who lights his taper at mine, receives light without darkening me.” Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Issac McPherson, “No Patents on Ideas,” 13 August 1813. 


It's Sunday. For those of you fortunate enough to have free time, today is a great day to make time for your children.  Time is one of the best gifts you can give to them.  It makes them feel loved and valued.  It does not have to cost you any money and in fact, you could use this time to teach and be taught, creative ways to hang out.  Days off are good times to work on improving the quality of your life with your children.

Ideas on how to spend your time today...
bicycling, walking, playing tennis, indoor games, painting, drawing, cooking, creating crafts, cleaning up and clearing out junk to plan a yard sale...anything thing you can think of that you would enjoy. Tailor it to your family's personal interests and encourage participation by giving jobs according to the ages and abilities of the children.

Something we like to do in my family is plan and execute a family meal with food ideas from places we find interesting.  My daughter and I enjoy cooking together so we will work to create the meal from a specific region.  She loves food from New Orleans, so she will gather recipes and coupons to  put a meal together.  We will shop for the food and then prep and cook an entree and (always) desert.  Shrimp gumbo with beignets is a family favorite. There is plenty of cutting and chopping of vegetables for gumbo, so we spend a great deal of time together, laughing and talking along the way.  

After a week of work and school it is a great way to connect and unwind and really enjoy the gift of who our children are.  Special time, indeed!

Introduction to singlemombuzz

"We make the world a better place for ourselves, when we make the world better for others."
Sharon Lynch - Director at SWARM

Hello Single Moms!

I have created this blog for single moms in the hopes of reaching those who want to interact and have conversations about issues we face as single moms. Singlemombuzz is a blog that will follow the works of a grassroots organization known as SWARM. SWARM is a group of single moms who meet monthly to improve their lives and the lives of other single moms, through information sharing and philanthropy.  We want to reach out and help in ways that will have long lasting and positive influence on the single mom and her family.  Let's face it, no matter what our difference are, (socio-economic, ethnic, religious, or other) we want to be great mothers as we seek success as women.

Having spoken to many, many single moms over the last two decades, the one consistent struggle heard over and over has been about finances.  It did not matter what economic bracket they were in.   If they had money, they wanted to protect what they had, and if they had too little money, they wanted to know how to make money.   So this blog will often touch upon issues such as finance, savings, employment and career. We will share information that we have learned along the way. It may be as simple as 'If you can not afford it, do not buy it!'  It may be more complicated and involve you calculating your monthly grocery bill to determine ways to cut out frivolous spending so you can start to save for your future.  As I write I will try to keep the message flowing.  I know how valuable your time is.  I also understand that sharing information in a timely manner, can help you put that information into play.  And...just maybe this information sharing will be just what you need to help get you moving in the direction of your personal success.  SWARM defines success as the state of happiness, contentment, financial security and knowing your purpose in life is (and doing it).  How do you define success?

It is my hope that you will share some of your struggles and successes so other mothers can see that, even if life throws you some curves,  you can still create a great life for you and your children.

We make the world a better place for ourselves when we make the world better for others.

So come by often, and feel free to share your ideas, thoughts and concerns.