No longer a single mom?

A few months ago my amazing boyfriend proposed to me while we were on a white water rafting trip. I thought we were headed that direction, but never did I anticipate him proposing while we were camping! Throughout these last few months of announcing the engagement, there has been one overwhelmingly popular question after “What’s the date?” And that is, “So when are you no longer a single mom?”

Excuse me? I’m pretty sure I will always be a single mom as long as I don’t marry my son’s father, which is not the case. I don’t think that just because I will no longer be single, that my title of single mom gets taken away. I love that title! It took me a long time to grow into it, but I did. I am proud of that title, and I wear that title like a pageant queen wears her Miss America crown. I earned that title, dammit, and I worked really hard to be a good single mom. I’ve worked really hard for other single parents to be proud their title as well. And I don’t think that just because I have found happiness and true love with another man means that I have to give up my Single Mom title.

I realize that I no longer have it as rough as I used to. I am no longer alone. I have someone to lean on when times are rough, and someone to help around the house. I do not have it as tough as single parents do. But I have lived that life and have been through the trenches. Those trenches were very deep and dark at times. I persevered and made it through to see another day. Now I get to face new challenges as a married, single parent. Learning to work together as a family unit, when I have never really had to do that. I’ve been the law, and that is that. Now there is another deciding factor in family decisions and direction. It will have its challenges, I am sure of that. But if I survived the last 8 years as a single mom, I can survive as a married, single mom. Just please don’t take my Single Mom crown away from me!