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Lashonda A.
Lashonda A. Sendmail

Running a Race as a Single Mom

posted almost 2 years ago | Report

I am a single mother to a 9 and 5 year old. I will probably run my first race at the end of April in Novi, MI. I've been trying to figure out how to do it and realized I will have to put them in daycare while I run the race.

How do you parents, especially those of you who both run, run races with children? They are too old for the strollers (obviously LOL) but too young to stand on the sidelines. My nearest family is two hours away in Indiana.

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9 posts

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  • Smitha
    Smitha Sendmail

    Babysitters. Unfortunately, at $12-15/2 kids, that can run very expensive on longer distances(we'll be paying around $60-75 for this weekend's half marathon). So DH and I do only the most important races together and we swap for the other ones.
    Sometimes we ask the babysitter to bring the kids down. Saves us about 1hr and the kids love it, and since its major races we swap there are lots of freebies for the babysitter too.

    posted almost 2 years ago

  • Tiffany B.
    Tiffany B. Sendmail

    I'm a single mommy too!! LOL. I haven't ran my first race yet (hopefully in June) either but I'm planning to take my daughter to my stay with my friend for that day. Do you have any friends that you trust? I know you are thinking about daycare but how about a babysitter? They are usually cheaper and work around your time versus going to a daycare with certain operation hours.

    posted almost 2 years ago

  • Lashonda A.
    Lashonda A. Sendmail
    in reply to what Tiffany B. said:I'm a single mommy too!! LOL. I haven't ran my first race yet (hopefully in June) either but I'm planning to take my daughter to my stay with my friend for that day. Do you have any friends that you trust? I know you are thinking about daycare b... read more

    I do but the challenge is their availability. For the April 28th race it's not a problem-I can have one of my students sit with the kids and make sure they get off to bed on time (the race is at 7 p.m., their bedtime is 7:30 and they have school the next day)-it's the early morning races I'm more concerned with.

    I'll find a way-I"m determined to run my first race before the middle of May! :-)

    posted almost 2 years ago

  • Melissa K.PRO
    Melissa K. Sendmail

    I guess I am lucky, I am a single/divorced mom. My daughter goes with her dad every other weekend so I plan my racing around that. There are some races (usually run by churches) that sometimes have child care available. These are few and far between.

    The other trick I've learned is go run races where the family is. I did my first race in Ohio, it started about 1/2 mile from my parents house so they watched her and I ran. I stayed for the weekend (which I would have done anyway), but killed two birds with one stone.

    And remember, you are setting a good example for them, don't feel guilty.

    posted almost 2 years ago

  • Lashonda A.
    Lashonda A. Sendmail

    Good points Melissa. My bigger worry is for when we move-right now we are two hours from my family, but will be moving much farther away, so I will definitely have to get the kids involved with a babysitter. However, I was reading Sister Agnes' blog and another gentleman whose son has learned to love racing and has run a 5K with his dad, and would love to be able to get my boys involved and we could all go running together :-)

    posted almost 2 years ago

  • Travis T.
    Travis T. Sendmail

    Wish you luck introducing running to your boys. I'm sure they would love spending the time with you and they'd no doubt see a different side of you as well.

    posted almost 2 years ago

  • Karina T.
    Karina T. Sendmail
    in reply to what Lashonda A. said:Good points Melissa. My bigger worry is for when we move-right now we are two hours from my family, but will be moving much farther away, so I will definitely have to get the kids involved with a babysitter. However, I was reading Sister Agnes' ... read more

    getting the kids involved is a great idea. I am a stepmom and I keep mentioning to the boys that sometime maybe we could all go for a run together... they're 6 and 10 and getting more interested in sports, so hopefully it will work out!

    there are a lot of races out there that have longer distances but also a 1 mile "fun run" that would be a good way to get your kids involved. I've seen kids run it solo and also with a parent by their side.

    posted almost 2 years ago

  • Jennifer G.
    Jennifer G. Sendmail

    WTG for taking in the challenge, Lashonda! And getting the kids involved is a great idea. My whole family runs, including my mom who is our frequent babysitter so when we all do a race it gets tricky, especially when everyone is running a different distance and will finish at different times. Are there any school friends they could hang out with that morning? Sometimes Sunday mornings aren't too bad for setting up a play date or maybe even a sleep over Saturday night. Have you put feelers out at school to see if there are any other mom's who run who might be willing to do swaps with you?

    posted almost 2 years ago

  • Lashonda A.
    Lashonda A. Sendmail
    in reply to what Jennifer G. said:WTG for taking in the challenge, Lashonda! And getting the kids involved is a great idea. My whole family runs, including my mom who is our frequent babysitter so when we all do a race it gets tricky, especially when everyone is running a differ... read more

    I have not-sadly the kids go to school where a lot of parents aren't really involved-I'm one of the few parents they know by name and face and are familiar with. I do work with college students though who have proven to be wonderful babysitters. And my sister has offered to come out and support me in the racing when I race locally near her so they can hang with her on those days.

    On another subject I just watched Spirit of the Marathon-talk about a weep fest-I couldn't stop crying for all the folks putting their hearts into the races and finishing (I'm such a sap LOL)

    posted almost 2 years ago

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