Double Posted by Accident

Hi C.,

I'm in the Portland Metro area-- you might want to check Portland Family magazine and Metro Parent for family friendly activities.

A wonderful homeschool mom name Laura Lucidae throws together a fabulous activities calendar each month on her blog "Stag Beetle Power". She updates a few days before the new month with lots of free educational events.
http://stagbeetlepower.blogspot.com/2013/11/december-even...

Here's a link to the meetups:
http://single-moms.meetup.com/cities/us/or/portland/

I think the sorts of relationships you are talking about take a lot of time to develop. Especially the holiday part-- I would focus first and foremost on creating fun traditions with your kids. Finding other parents who discipline/parent in a similar way is helpful to creating those long-term relationships. I'd just go out to do fun things and see who you meet, what they are like. The situations I know of where families get together for holidays are usually through a common religious organization or they are long-term friendships in the neighborhood-- something where the women in question have common interests (service work, cooking, crafting-- activities which lend themselves to communal participation). Good luck!

Back in the dark ages, my mom was a member of a group called, Parents without Partners. She made a ton of friends, ran into old friends that she did not realize were divorced and living here in town,

They held things just for adults, but also gatherings for parents with their kids.. I have fond memories of this.

One of the single parents groups, not our own church, had a fun group. There was no rule you had to attend that church, and they were a blast. My mom would go to their adult only gatherings. I recall lots of fun camping, boating, picnics with that group and their kids too.

Here are some things I found online. Not sure if they meet your needs. http://single-parent-support-group.meetup.com/cities/us/o...

Look it up by saying single parents, single women with children..

I made most of my friends volunteering at school and in scouts, at my kids' sporting events, and working on school projects/committees.
You meet all kinds of people this way, and many activities/jobs can be and/are done by working moms.
I will say these friendships took TIME to develop, like over a course of several years.
You can also meet people by volunteering, taking a class or joining a club or group that interests you, book club, tennis, yoga, art/photo classes, anything you're into! This way you meet people you naturally have something in common with.
Is joining a club, like the YMCA, an option? Also check your parks and rec department for family oriented classes and activities. We did a LOT of those programs when my kids were small.

I am not divorced but I know there are a lot of planned activities for singles in the Dallas area. You can do as much as you want with their activities such as dinners, game nights, trips, etc. Of course, the activities are adult. I think the group is called Events and Adventures, My mom was also in the Parents without Partners group.

I am sure is it a huge adjustment going from a couple with family to divorced with family. It is hard on everyone. You children need your focus on them to help them make adjustments from the divorce and stay active as a family.

Are your children in any sports or extra curricular activities? There are lots of families single and divorced who are active with children's activities.

If your children are in school, get involved with the PTA and volunteer.

Networking is important. You never know if someone might know someone who is looking for what you are looking for. I am not talking about dating and men...

However, it is good for you to have adult friends, etc. Do you work outside the home? My best friend is someone I met 25 yrs ago when we worked together. What about your church, neighborhood?

Our neighborhood is very active with things going on for families. I do believe you need to focus on your children and don't expect to be spending holidays which is pretty personal with someone right away.

Best wishes to you and Merry Christmas.

I joined a mom's group with moms who had kids my kid's age. It's nice, I don't know how they started it but I got involved when a new coworker told me about it. We have a weekly craft night at one lady's house (just whatever craft we're working on, or even just balancing our checkbooks and talking.) and sometimes have a mom's night out. We'll also do the zoo and stuff on the weekends with the kids. I don't know how to find a group like that, like I said, I found out from a coworker, but it's been nice to have.