Mommunes are defined as a community of moms living together under one roof…helping each other raise children together.
I’ve been reading a lot lately about moms joining together to raise their children in a community called a Mommune. As a single parent myself, I know how challenging it can be to go it alone. It literally does take a village to raise a child. But what if your family isn’t nearby? In that case, a Mommune might be just the thing.
Single Mom Central
We all know how expensive child care can be, and when you are single, all of the expenses fall on you. The pressure can be immense. Younger children get sick often, so it becomes necessary to assemble a backup childcare team to help you out. This is your village, and your livelihood depends upon it.
You know that if you miss too much work, it will jeopardize your job. This is the beginning of a high-wire balancing act that will last until your child goes to college.
Her Perspective
I was able to mitigate many of these pressures with help, but that is not the case for everyone. My main issue was finding the balance between my personal and professional lives, and unfortunately my employers were not always supportive.
I remember working for a company when my son was a toddler, that would literally rake me over the coals every time I needed to take time off.
Single mothers are faced with these types of pressures every day. If you are married, you might have the option to take turns to stay home with a sick child (I know that isn’t always the case), but if you’re single, you’re out of luck.
Why Mommunes Might Work
We all know that women can’t always live together (we found this out during college lol), but a mommune with a group of like-minded women could work.
Shared Expenses
Living in a Mommune might allow you to reduce your living expenses which would in turn free up some of your disposable income for your child’s extracurricular activities etc.
Childcare Backup
Since you are all coming home to the same place, you would potentially have someone to help you out if your child is sick or you could alternate pickups etc. without impacting your job.
Playdate Central
Any single parent can relate to the sense of dread that settles over you when you realize that you’ll be playing Candyland for the 10th time that evening. Only kidding, but if you know you know lol.
Community
I love the idea of “We are all in this together”. It’s so easy to feel isolated as a single parent, and I think it’s a great way to find commonalities with other mothers and support each other.
At The End Of The Day
At the end of the day, it’s important to know that many women are single mothers by choice but not always. Many women have divorced or been widowed, and doing things on their own for the very first time can be scary. We need to show up and support other mothers regardless of their circumstances.
If Mommunes are the new wave, I’m here for it!
If you have a moment, check out my previous post “What Keeps Us Apart…The Mommy Wars” https://herpicketfence.com/what-keeps-us-apart-the-mommy-wars/
