How Divorced Dads Can Be a Rockstar on Mother’s Day

We get it, divorce is ugly and hurtful. You thought that you’d found the person with whom you could share everything, and it crumpled before your eyes. You don’t see your kids as often as you did; you’re eating meals alone, and trying to put your life back together. In the meantime, here comes Mother’s Day, and your kids have asked for your help to celebrate their mom.

Unless your kids are teens, driving, and self-sufficient, they need help for certain events to recognize their mom. It’s far too easy to push it all aside and think that someone else will handle it. You can push through and show your kids that you are a super dad by how you approach these days.

We asked a few of our former clients here at Larsen Law Firm, a leading divorce attorney in Provo, Utah to share their thoughts about Mother’s Day and their ex-spouse’s participation (or not), as the case may be.

Janie – age 29, divorced for 2 years

I was completely unaware of how hard that my first birthday and Mother’s Day would be after we separated. It was an acrimonious split with a lot of raw feelings. My kids, used to going with their dad to buy gifts, didn’t know what to do, and they didn’t want to upset me by asking. Finally, I realized that I had to take them out to buy my gift. They were still young, so giving them money and letting them go alone in the store wasn’t an option. We tried to make it a game, and I told them that I would help them buy something, but they were so upset that I “knew” beforehand what they were buying. For the next holiday, I asked a friend if she could take them and it went much better.

Rebecca – age 26, divorced for 6 months

My ex is probably the best one on the planet as far as holidays and Mother’s Day goes. He took the kids shopping and helped them find the perfect gift for me. There wasn’t a lot of money for either of us after we separated, but he managed to help the kids feel great about what they picked out. He answered a need that I didn’t really foresee when we split. I’ve heard from other single moms that their kids are so stressed and ashamed of their inability to go shopping for them and how there is no one to take them.

Clearly, these women are on different ends of the spectrum as far as their experiences with Mother’s Day and their ex-husbands’ participation or lack thereof. There can be a happy medium for many families, and whenever possible, couples should try and support each other as much as possible, as it will yield great dividends in their children’s lives, advises a leading Provo divorce attorney with Larsen Law Firm.