From that first ride home together from the hospital, parents will spend many hours in the car with their children. However, what many parents fail to realize is that a vehicle can be an extremely dangerous place for a child. In fact, motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for children between the ages of three and 14 in the US.
So, what can you do to make sure your child is as safe as possible while in your vehicle? Well, if you follow the Georgia car seat safety guidelines, you should be in good shape. Georgia law requires that children under 8 be restrained in an age and weight appropriate manner while in a moving vehicle. So, what does this look like for different ages?
Here is a quick guide:
Birth to One Year
Up until the age of one, your child should be riding in a rear-facing car seat only. Why? This type of car seat helps to protect a child’s neck in the event of a car crash. Even a sudden stop can cause injuries in children this young if they are not in the proper type of safety seat. If your child is in this age range, you can choose from several types of rear-facing car seats. You could pick a seat made for infants only, or, if you want a seat you can use a little longer, you could pick a 3-in-1 or convertible option.
One to Three Years
Most pediatricians recommend using a rear-facing car seat for your child as long as possible. These car seats simply lessen the overall chance of injury in the event of a car crash. You can check the labeling on your child’s seat for the weight and height limits, and keep your child in his or her rear-facing seat until they outgrow these limits.
Four to Seven Years
Once your child has outgrown his or her rear-facing car seat, you will need a forward-facing seat with a harness. These types of seats still provide a lot of extra protection for your child in the event of an accident. Once your child outgrows the weight or height limit of their forward-facing seat, you will need to get a booster seat.
Eight to Twelve Years
When a child is in this age range, many parents stop bothering with car-seats. However, this is a mistake. A booster seat should be used until your child has grown enough that a seat belt fits properly and snugly across their shoulder and chest. A booster seat helps the seat belt to do its job and restrain your child if an accident occurs. Booster seats should generally be used until a child is around 4’9”. Until they are at least 12, children should also be in the back seat. Riding in the back seat lowers the risk of injury or fatality in the event of an accident.
When used correctly, safety seats can reduce the chance of injury by 71 percent for infants, 54 percent for toddlers up to four, and 45% for children between four and eight. By simply following GA car seat regulations and making sure your child is properly secured in the right safety seat, you are helping to ensure the safety of your child. If you are unsure about which seat to pick for your child, ask your pediatrician or visit a GA child safety seat fitting location, where an expert can make sure your child is secured in the safest manner possible.
Samantha A. Gregory is an author, consultant, and speaker. She’s a single-mom lifestyle, money, and parenting expert featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times, Essence Magazine, HuffPost, ABC News, and Mint.com.
Samantha founded the award-winning RichSingleMomma.com™, the first online magazine featuring personal finance, parenting, and personal development content and courses for single moms.
She aims to inspire women who are ready to thrive and not just survive in their single motherhood journey. Connect with her on Instagram @richsinglemomma.
Being a mom is a full-time job. This is especially true when you’re a single momma! Between work, taking care of the kiddos and keeping the home from being a disaster zone, it can be pretty exhausting. That’s why it’s incredibly important to take a break from the regular routine and go on a vacation.
Yes, vacations can be expensive. But, if you plan them out in advance, you can save quite a bit of money. Here are some single mom travel ideas to help you have fun without burning a hole in your pocket or your bank account.
Use the buddy system
Between lodging and gas prices, going away for a week or even a weekend can really add up. One easy way to cut the costs while still managing to go out of town is by doing the trip with another single mom. This way, you can share the hotel and gas costs.
Another advantage of this plan is having another adult around to help wrangle the kids. Sure, you’ll have their kids there, too, but you’ll have the support of another mom to help lay down the law when the kids start to get unruly.
If you plan on leaving your kiddos with family, getting a group of friends together will help you cut the costs even more. Just think, if you can get three girlfriends to come with you, you’ll be able to split the hotel and gas costs four ways.
Travel during the off-season
If you’re thinking of going to a beach town or a ski town, you may want to consider going during the “off-season”. Hotels and other local attractions often mark-up their prices during the most popular months to increase their annual revenue. On the off months, these businesses are looking to increase their cash flow, so they offer the same amenities for a lower price.
Don’t worry, you don’t have to be stuck with poor weather to get better prices. You can visit these popular destinations during what is called “shoulder season”. This is just before or after (think weeks instead of months) the heavy tourist season. By delaying your trip by just a week, you could save big while still being able to enjoy the optimal weather for your destination.
Take advantage of rewards
Whether it’s a rewards credit card or a membership discount program, be sure to take advantage of the discounts and points that you have readily available. Rewards programs used to be tricky to use for vacations due to blackout dates. But nowadays, these companies are straying from the restrictions and making it much easier for you to cash in on your points.
Rewards programs also often allow their members to redeem points toward amusement parks and other attractions, so research what’s available to you when you’re determining where to take the kids on vacation.
If you have a particular hotel chain or airline that you like to use, you may want to see if they offer their own rewards or frequent user program. This especially pays off if you ever have to travel for work.
Another discount source is AAA. If you’re already a member, be sure to stop in and see what travel discounts they have available for you or your kids. If you’re not a member, you may want to still research the discounts. You may find that the discounts you can get for your vacation pays for the membership fee.
Look for single parents month promotions
Many resorts are now offering single parents promotions. These resorts often charge a per person price for their rooms. When there is just one adult in a room, they often will charge one of the kids at the adult price. But during single parents promotions, they charge just one adult fee and the kids are all charged at the kids rate. This can be big savings, especially if choose an extended stay.
Another bonus to single parents promotions is that you will be vacationing at the same time as other single parents. This helps build instant camaraderie with the other vacationers.
House swap
If you are willing to open your house to strangers, a house swap vacation may be a great option for you and your kids. In a house swap, you stay in someone’s house when they stay in yours. This is a nice solution when you have kids with you because you have access to a full kitchen. Also, if you find the right house, everyone can have their own bed and you can score your own bathroom.
While this option does mean opening your house to a stranger, it cuts out the lodging costs from your vacation. This enables you to allocate more funds toward fun activities and excursions for your kids. It may even make it possible for you to bring a babysitter with you on your vacation to help with the kids.
Contact the Chamber of Commerce
Virtually every town has a Chamber of Commerce office. These organizations are available to help you plan your trip. Contact them in advance for family friendly travel tips and recommendations. They may also be able to help you locate deals and discounts for the area.
If this article has been helpful click the image below to share it on your favorite Pinterest board!
Samantha A. Gregory is an author, consultant, and speaker. She’s a single-mom lifestyle, money, and parenting expert featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times, Essence Magazine, HuffPost, ABC News, and Mint.com.
Samantha founded the award-winning RichSingleMomma.com™, the first online magazine featuring personal finance, parenting, and personal development content and courses for single moms.
She aims to inspire women who are ready to thrive and not just survive in their single motherhood journey. Connect with her on Instagram @richsinglemomma.
A reader had a question about how to deal with her single mom dating frustrations. She wanted to know how to find a great guy who is not needy and expecting her to do all the emotional and financial work.
She also wanted to know how to find a man who is strong, professional, and not looking for a needy woman (which she is the complete opposite of). She’s tried online dating but that doesn’t work and she wants a different kind of man but keeps attracting the same kind as the one she dumped.
This lady has several things going on in her head and her emotions are very high. I can understand her dilemma and hopefully I can offer some insight to at least give her hope and peace.
I want to start with this caveat. Everybody is looking for love and looking for relief from the loneliness they feel. It is universal and deeply heartfelt. As humans we can’t get around this because we are all born with a hole in our soul that yearns to be filled with love.
First – Decide What You Want Out of Life and Single Mom Dating
Having said that, I want to encourage this woman to take a deep breath and really think about what she wants. She might use the time after her child is asleep to list all the good things she wants out of life. She will benefit from imagining her desires by closing her eyes and seeing those good things happening to her. This visualization is key to getting what you want out of life.
If she wants a strong, professional man she should imagine herself with that kind of man. Sometimes we focus so much on what we don’t want we end up attracting those things into our lives, over and over again. She mentioned that she keeps running into and attracting the same kind of man.
Second – Be the Kind of Person You Want to Attract
The next step is to look into her own life and heart and see if she is the kind of person she wants to attract. We are like mirrors and magnets. We see in others what we see in ourselves and we attract to ourselves, just like a magnet, the kind of people we really are on the inside.
Despite her saying she didn’t want a needy man, she is portraying neediness in desperately wanting to date, find a good man, and hold on to her strong, professional mask. Yes I said mask, because this is what she is hiding behind.
Remember I said that every person longs for love and has a space in their soul that needs to be filled? Often we hide behind one or several layers of masks to avoid being hurt or because we want to appear a certain way. This mask protects us, we think; but in reality it imprisons us and keeps us from the very thing we want. Love.
Looking deep within and seeing her character and personality is much more important than feeling strong and wearing the “I’m a professional” badge. At the end of the day it doesn’t matter if you cannot connect to others on an intimate level.
Forth – Look Deeper Into Your True Needs
I’ve gone a bit deep, I know, but the issues are deeper than they look on the surface. This woman thinks she wants a man who is different from what she’s dated, but what she probably really wants is deep connections with others, period.
She cannot attract the kind of man she wants until she is content with who she is as a person and gives up the search. She is not ready to receive the gift of a great relationship because she hasn’t accepted the gift of her own beautiful soul.
Fifth – Start Living Life and Open Your Heart
What if she looked around and started befriending people who need her love and support.
What if she took her daughter to volunteer once a month at her favorite charity?
What if she signed up for a sports league in her neighborhood?
What if she offered her professional services to the local networking group?
In each one of these scenarios she could meet the man of her dreams. When she is open and receptive because she is opening her heart to causes, the right man will come into her life.
Sixth – Focus on What You Want (Not What You Don’t Want)
As a whole, single moms are probably worn out because they have to do it all. I know I am, but I’m learning to take care of myself and giving myself a break. I am focusing on what I want and not on what I don’t want; and guess what? I am getting more of what I want out of life.
This ability to focus does not happen overnight. We do not wake up one day and discover our lives have done a complete 180 degree turn. We usually begin to notice our frustrations and pain in life then begin to seek answers. In our search we may find the problem we thought we had is very different than the one we actually have.
So the woman who is frustrated about the lack of date-able men and wants to find the perfect man may soon find her problems could disappear if she will only look a little deeper and refocus her problems.
Opening her heart to new opportunities in the areas of giving loving support, volunteering once a month, playing in the neighborhood sports league, or networking to share her professional skills will open the door to quality, date-able men.
Are you still reeling or healing from a toxic relationship? My book, No More Crumbs, can help you build up your resistance to future bad relationships. You deserve to be in a healthy relationship. To do that you have to be healthy and know how to spot unhealthy men who will take you down a screaming roller coaster ride of terror. Pick up a copy of the book and begin healing your life.
Single Mom Dating Frustrations: 6 Steps to Getting Your Heart and Mind Ready for Love
Samantha A. Gregory is an author, consultant, and speaker. She’s a single-mom lifestyle, money, and parenting expert featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times, Essence Magazine, HuffPost, ABC News, and Mint.com.
Samantha founded the award-winning RichSingleMomma.com™, the first online magazine featuring personal finance, parenting, and personal development content and courses for single moms.
She aims to inspire women who are ready to thrive and not just survive in their single motherhood journey. Connect with her on Instagram @richsinglemomma.
Emotional pain is built into the fabric of life. It shows up in multiple forms: anxiety, loneliness, feeling rejected, overwhelmed by the stresses of life and the list goes on. In the midst of these challenging experiences, we naturally look for ways to change the way we’re feeling—to alleviate the pain.
If we don’t have healthy ways of coping with emotional distress, we’re susceptible to relying on things like food, alcohol, shopping and Internet surfing to get the soothing and relief we seek.
To protect your wellbeing, it’s important to be equipped with tools and a game plan to address the challenging emotional experiences that show up in life.
Here are 6 steps to diffusing intense emotional symptoms:
Step 1: Take a deep breath, relax your muscles, and feel your feet on the ground.
Step 2: Remind yourself that thoughts and feelings come and go like a weather pattern passing through; I won’t always feel this way.
Step 3: Instead of fighting what you’re feeling, move into emotional acceptance, allowing the painful feeling to breathe. Say to yourself, I can live with this feeling right now.
Step 4: Describe out-loud or on paper what you’re feeling and the thoughts you’re having, almost as if you were taking on the role of an impartial commentator. Label the emotions and describe where and how you feel them in your body.
Step 5: Engage in a five-minute grounding exercise. First, listen to all the sounds in your environment intently for 1 to 2 minutes. Then pick out a visual anchor in your environment, something pleasing to the eye, such as a painting or picture, and study it visually for a couple of minutes. Next notice how your body feels on the cushion or chair or run your hand under warm water noticing the sensations (1 to 2 minutes). Lastly, grab a spice or something that has a pleasing aroma and engage your olfactory sense. Study the smell for a minute or so. This process of grounding is highly effective in both bringing awareness into the present moment, which is incompatible with internal spinning, and decreasing emotional intensity.
Step 6: Engage in meaningful action. Instead of turning inward and focusing on how you’re feeling, place your attention and concern on someone else. Engage in an act of kindness or if you pray, pray for someone you know is struggling. Take some action that reflects the best part of who you are.
Next time you find yourself emotionally overwhelmed or in a painful feeling state, implement the 6 steps you just reviewed. Especially with time and practice, you will notice that this approach reduces the power and presence of emotional pain in your life. You can’t always avoid the emotional challenges that come your way but you can develop a set of responses that protect your wellbeing and keep you fully engaged and present with life. Give it a try!
Samantha A. Gregory is an author, consultant, and speaker. She’s a single-mom lifestyle, money, and parenting expert featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times, Essence Magazine, HuffPost, ABC News, and Mint.com.
Samantha founded the award-winning RichSingleMomma.com™, the first online magazine featuring personal finance, parenting, and personal development content and courses for single moms.
She aims to inspire women who are ready to thrive and not just survive in their single motherhood journey. Connect with her on Instagram @richsinglemomma.
If you watched Beyonce’s Homecoming documentary on Netflix, you know she spent 8-12 months working her body to the bone to get ready for her show at Coachella. I’m betting she got massages and other pampering services weekly, if not daily to soothe her aching muscles.
I’m also willing to bet she went on a spa retreat after the show to get some much needed “me” time to recover. She can do that since she is rolling in the cash, but what can a single mom with not much disposable income do when she needs to be pampered?
Getting a massage can easily cost $65 per hour per session. If you don’t have that kind of money to splurge it sucks when you just need your body cared for. But wait! There is good news! You can get pampered and treated like Beyonce’ but for far less. Stick with me and I’ll tell you all about it.
Years ago I learned about how to get luxury services for less for me and my family, mostly because of my mom. My mom went to cosmetology school when I was a teen and I learned about the discounted deeply discounted services including hair care, nail care, and facials.
The students were under the supervision of a licensed cosmetologist so their work was done carefully and meticulously. Granted it took a little longer but the results were good.
Much of the time we feel that because we have a limited amount of money we can’t (or won’t) pamper ourselves because. Despite the perceived limitations, there are ways to get luxury services at an affordable price.
There is more than one way to get what you need, whether it’s spa services whether is beautician services, whether it’s healthcare, car care, by simply visiting a training center.
You can go to a beauty school and receive deeply discounted hair care. This includes shampoo and set, blowouts, chemical treatments, or deep conditioning.
These services start at $5 or $6. Can you really can’t beat a $5 shampoo?. If you want to add a set, you can probably add five more dollars. If you want to get a color that might be $25.
Compare that to going to a regular beautician and paying $40 to $45 for a simple washing set or paying $100 to get your hair colored.
How do you find these services? You can search online for a list of beauty schools in your area. It’s that simple.
Manicures, pedicures, and gel nails are a pampering ritual many women practice weekly, monthly, or on special occasions. We love getting our nails done because it makes us feel pretty and pampered.
My favorite nail treatment is the SNS nails because it lasts for weeks and looks brand new every day. You can go to the same beauty school like the one you went to get your hair done to get your nails done.
A basic manicure can be as low as $5, a pedicure for $5 or a mani-pedi spa treatment for around $20. All the services are completed under the supervision of a licensed cosmetologist so you don’t have to worry about damage or poor service.
The next thing is facials which are one of my favorite beauty treatments. When I get a facial it is like I’m in heaven because I’m getting my skin cleansed and massaged, my neck massaged and my scalp massaged.
When I go through that process is so relaxing, especially with the warm towels and wonderful fragrances. You can get your facial through an esthetician school or cosmetology school.
You can get a facial for $20 or $25 which is really inexpensive compared to going to a private company. You can also get your eyebrows while you are there if it is a service the esthetician offers.
Another place to go for us to get a luxury experience for an affordable rate is a massage therapy school.
My best friend went to massage therapy school and she said that they had their clinic open and they would actually work on patients. Clients came in and paid $20-25 for a one hour massage.
Now you surely can do that right so what it takes really again is doing the research to find out if there’s a massage school in your area. Call them up, make an appointment, and actually go get the work done at a deep discount. This is luxury for less.
I’m a big fan of all these little ways to get what you need. I think once you start doing the research you will find there’s a lot out there for you and you don’t have to break the bank in order to get the services.
I don’t know if you realize it or not but if you need health services you can go to a community or technical college to get checkups, dental care, and etc.
Programs that offer physician assistant, dental assistant or dental hygiene, even phlebotomy schools often have a clinic for students to practice.
Call the school or visit online to see if they have a clinic, hours of service, and number to call to make an appointment.
Then the next thing I want you to kind of tap into is dental services. So if you happen to have a dental school near you, you can go to their clinic and get dental work done for a deep discount.
It may be a dental hygiene school, a community college or technical schools with a dental program. You can go to the associated dental clinic to get teeth cleaning, teeth whitening, or even x-rays all at a deep discount.
You can pay a very low price and get quality service because these students are more than likely going to be advanced students. They will give you quality service because their grades depend on it.
They are under the supervision of a licensed and certified instructor who guides and checks the student’s work. Definitely check it out and make sure that you are tapping into these resources near you.
So far we’ve learned about beauty services, we’ve learned about luxury spa services like facials and massage and we’ve learned about health services.
The last thing I want to talk to you about are mechanics services. If you need a tune-up, spark plugs change, or a diagnostic test on your car because you don’t know what the problem is, you can go to a Technical College.
Find the school that has a program for auto mechanics or auto body service. Don’t be nervous about taking your car there because the instructors are licensed and certified mechanics and they know about the car and they can help you.
Go Ahead and Get Your Pampering On. You CAN Afford It!
Isn’t it exciting to know you can get all these typically expensive services for less? Now it is time to go try these different services out. Look for schools in your area. Search for the community colleges the technical colleges and find out if they have the services that you need.
There are lots of schools out there who provide massage therapy services, health care service, and car care service. It may cost you less than $50 to pamper yourself vs. $250. I’m sure you can find a way to spend $50 on yourself, right?
BONUS TIP
Another place to get health and beauty services and even car care service is Groupon or other group buying apps. I see massage, dental, and chiropractic care all the time on these sites.
You might be able to get gift cards from family or friend for your birthday, Christmas, or other gift-giving holidays. Sometimes all it takes is asking.
What services have you gotten from a school, a tradable or technical school, or any other school and pay rock bottom prices for?
Samantha A. Gregory is an author, consultant, and speaker. She’s a single-mom lifestyle, money, and parenting expert featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times, Essence Magazine, HuffPost, ABC News, and Mint.com.
Samantha founded the award-winning RichSingleMomma.com™, the first online magazine featuring personal finance, parenting, and personal development content and courses for single moms.
She aims to inspire women who are ready to thrive and not just survive in their single motherhood journey. Connect with her on Instagram @richsinglemomma.
Hi! Welcome to RichSingleMomma.com. I started this website almost a decade ago because I couldn't find any blogs back then that helped single moms with money. I was having some success in that area so I decided to share what I knew about side hustles, making extra money, and managing money. Read more...
