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father lives 150 miles away

11 replies

fordfiesta · 27/11/2007 21:30

what would you say is reasonable access for a father living 150 miles away. ds is 2.5.

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Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Hekate · 27/11/2007 21:31

As often as he can possibly afford it.

fordfiesta · 27/11/2007 21:33

he is planning on having ds stay with him.... am a little concerned re the distance (and as most single mums sceptical of his paranting skills) but need to come up with something workable.

OP posts:
Hekate · 27/11/2007 21:42

I guess the best thing is for him to have enough contact to enable him to learn how to be a competent parent. God knows, we all have to learn! How often does he want to have his son to stay?

fordfiesta · 27/11/2007 21:45

thurs,fri,sat every other w/e

OP posts:
fordfiesta · 27/11/2007 21:45

thurs,fri,sat every other w/e

OP posts:
Hekate · 28/11/2007 08:03

Sounds reasonable to me, tbh. And better to start early so it is just natural. It is good he is pushing for contact - PROPER contact, not half an hour down the park! so that he can be a father, not a babysitter.

3 days out of 14 is so little, when you think about it. I would die if I only got to see my kids for 3 days a fortnight - wouldn't you? So I'd let him (encourage him!), it's not a lot for a father to ask and children need their dad too. (unless dad is abusive to them of course.)

Alambil · 28/11/2007 09:42

whos going to be paying for the transport to cover the distance?

He should - it is his visiting time (so said the court when I was in the same quandry)

That may put pay to his bright idea anyway - if he can't afford it.

If he can, however and if - ONLY if he is a good parent (ie not abusive/neglectful) then he should be able to go for it.

My ex refused to pay and I was on benefits so couldn't afford it (but he was abusive too) so court said unless he paid; contact didn't happen... contact hasn't happened for 4 yrs!!! (hooray!) I may be in a totally different position though in that I was fighting to stop contact because he was abusive and dangerous.

If your ex is none of those things, I say go for it - 3 days off a fortnight - how brill!

dingdong05 · 30/11/2007 01:02

My lo's dad is on the other end of the UK and not very well off, so when he finally said he was willing t sort out some proper visits (after an absence from before birth for 2 years with only 1 request to be able to come up when he fancied it) I requested that he think seriously about how much time and money he could afford to spend routinely for the next 10 years. It would have to be robust enough to work through his having a family and career on the other side of the country too. To me the most important thing was that his visits were regular and consistent.
So now he comes up for a weekend every 3 months, with phone calls in between. I am always there but I do sit down with a paper (a rare treat!) and let them go off and play In the future there will probably be additional visits, but they will be built around this routine. My lo is 3 3/4 and this has been the arrangement for just over a year now, and it works for us.Not ideal, I know, but considering our relative situ I think it is the best we could do right now.

bebopallula · 30/11/2007 12:52

my sons dad lives 90 miles away, he looks after him every other weekend when he can. He does the travelling thank god! as i am always so exhausted and broke i couldn't do it. Our son has had some problems related to his dd leaving, 2yrs ago(he is now 41/2) This problem is now resolved, but he is still hurting me(pinching,pulling my hair,biting, hitting) I think because his dd sees him for a short time, he doesn't want to discipline him and he comes back a bit wild, all the hard work on boundaries and good behavior i do, have changed. his dd doesn't want to say no to lots of things (like hitting)He says he's 'play fighting' and is 'happy to see him,' but he does actively encourage him to be (tough) and as a result he comes back doing it to us. (me and my eldest son)There may be an element of guilt in there too, so he allows him to behave aggressively. sometimes i think it might be better that he lives with his dd as he likes a lot of rough play and outdoor activities. i do my best to accommodate his needs and encourage gym and outdoor play. His dd has said he wants to raise him, but not sure how he would cope and how ds2 would really feel if he were to live with him, his behaviour might worsen, and he may feel rejected by me, however he does have a strong bond with dd and seems to prefer the company of men rather than women. He is continuing to say and do things to me that can be hurtful, like i'm going to put you in the bin, or i'm going to kill you! i don't take it seriously, but i do think he is angry with me that his DD not around anymore. I am worn out with his behaviour and his dad is not supportive or possibly not equipped to challenge him with bad behaviour towards me, it's as if he wants him to do wrong by me, to champion himself,it's disrepectful and damaging. when we were together, he discounted most things i said and wanted to take over, he wanted our son to himself. i have raised my other son well and he is a good kid, it effects my relationship with my him,which i am sad about,he is 15. I am in a real dilema about what to do for the best,i love my ds2 and want to look after him, but he is wearing me out to the point of real exhaustion with his miserable disposition, whatever i do, he's usually not satisfied. I am torn between two boys needs and it is very difficult to accommodate both on my own. What should i do? i'm wearing myself into the ground and not giving my eldest son the time he deserves. DS2's dad isn't very reliable but has said he really wants to raise our son....but is it a good idea due to the history?

bebopallula · 30/11/2007 12:53

my sons dad lives 90 miles away, he looks after him every other weekend when he can. He does the travelling thank god! as i am always so exhausted and broke i couldn't do it. Our son has had some problems related to his dd leaving, 2yrs ago(he is now 41/2) This problem is now resolved, but he is still hurting me(pinching,pulling my hair,biting, hitting) I think because his dd sees him for a short time, he doesn't want to discipline him and he comes back a bit wild, all the hard work on boundaries and good behavior i do, have changed. his dd doesn't want to say no to lots of things (like hitting)He says he's 'play fighting' and is 'happy to see him,' but he does actively encourage him to be (tough) and as a result he comes back doing it to us. (me and my eldest son)There may be an element of guilt in there too, so he allows him to behave aggressively. sometimes i think it might be better that he lives with his dd as he likes a lot of rough play and outdoor activities. i do my best to accommodate his needs and encourage gym and outdoor play. His dd has said he wants to raise him, but not sure how he would cope and how ds2 would really feel if he were to live with him, his behaviour might worsen, and he may feel rejected by me, however he does have a strong bond with dd and seems to prefer the company of men rather than women. He is continuing to say and do things to me that can be hurtful, like i'm going to put you in the bin, or i'm going to kill you! i don't take it seriously, but i do think he is angry with me that his DD not around anymore. I am worn out with his behaviour and his dad is not supportive or possibly not equipped to challenge him with bad behaviour towards me, it's as if he wants him to do wrong by me, to champion himself,it's disrepectful and damaging. when we were together, he discounted most things i said and wanted to take over, he wanted our son to himself. i have raised my other son well and he is a good kid, it effects my relationship with my him,which i am sad about,he is 15. I am in a real dilema about what to do for the best,i love my ds2 and want to look after him, but he is wearing me out to the point of real exhaustion with his miserable disposition, whatever i do, he's usually not satisfied. I am torn between two boys needs and it is very difficult to accommodate both on my own. What should i do? i'm wearing myself into the ground and not giving my eldest son the time he deserves. DS2's dad isn't very reliable but has said he really wants to raise our son....but is it a good idea due to the history?

mistressmiggins · 30/11/2007 21:12

my DC dad lives 3 hrs away
he has them every weekend once a month & comes to take them out for the day every other fortnight
suits my DC - they love the day visit cos they get daddy all to themselves (GF cant be bothered to come up and then they stay with them once a month
if he lived locally, would be more but he lives so far away

his choice - he moved so he only had 10 mins drive to work

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