Dating a single dad with sole custody
23-Sep-2020 13:14
A divorced full-time dad's children may not welcome you with open arms after you do meet.They may see you as an obstacle to their mom and dad getting back together, or they may feel jealous at the attention their father is giving to you.As the primary caregiver, this divorced dad is responsible for taking care of his children on a full-time basis and may not have a flexible schedule to accommodate your dating needs.A single full-time dad has parenting duties such as soccer practice, PTA meetings, parent-teacher conferences and sleepover parties to attend to before he can spend time with you.If your potential partner is one of these divorced custodial dads, you'll need to contend with issues that go above and beyond the typical dating scenarios, such as his family's dynamics, scheduling conflicts and his children's feelings about you.Although eventually, if things get serious, you may become one blended family, during the initial dating period you aren't yet at the stepmom stage.(Red Flags, we like to call them.) As we navigate “dating” again, we quickly realize the rules are very different as single parents.
Don't expect him to drop everything for a romantic night out with you or to be able to take off on a weekend trip out of town.
A divorced parent doesn't need to and often shouldn't introduce his children to every date or casual relationship, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics' website.