MatchWolf.com

Single parents dating is huge!  Just look at your local community church groups and you will find many pertaining to the needs of single parents – including meeting a potential partner or soulmate.  This phenomenon has surfaced as mainstream only over the past five years or so.  As a result many online dating sites have set up niche sites to cater for single parents dating.

Here are a few things to keep in mind if you are seeking a date and then a long-term lasting relationship through these sites (and many of these points pertain to the offline world as well):

1 Determine firstly if you really want to date and find a long-term partner.  Consider such things as the amount of spare time you have, baby-sitting arrangements for your kids, and your own self-confidence in meeting and screening new people.

2 Determine in your own mind what type of relationship you really want.  Are you looking for long-term or short term relationships? Are you seeking commitment. Do you want to bear children, or more children to the ones you already have? What type of person are you seeking?  – A stay at home type? Loves to travel? Tall? Short? Religious? What religion? Family oriented? Loves kids? Good family relationships? Complexion? Race? Write all this down.  This will help you gain a clear picture of the person your are seeking.  Be prepared to be a little flexible on this though.

3 Register at a number of reputable dating websites.  Some of these are listed in the earlier posts to this site. Peruse profiles and note only those that appeal to you and your gut instinct.  The great advantage of dating websites is that they operate 24/7.

4 Write your online profile honestly – particularly your age and parental status but DO NOT post pictures of your children under any circumstances. This is because of the internet lurkers who may be undesirable (pedophiles and perverts etc).

5 Being truthful pays off in the long-run as your new date won’t be in for any surprises down the track.  So mention that you have kids and list yourself as a single/divorced parent.    Be brief, don’t waffle on and on. When you find a potential match you can expand your background.  Of course, do NOT provide personal contact details like your phone numbers (cell and landline) or personal email.  Initially make use the of the dating site’s internal messaging.

6 Once you trust your initial contact then take your time, don’t feel rushed. Escalate your contact through emails, then phone preferably a prepaid cell, then meetings in neutral places like a local shopping mall coffee shop as suchlike.  Trust your gut instinct and terminate the connection if you become uncomfortable.

7 In addition to online dating sites go to your extended family and friends.  They know you and only wish the best for you.  Let them look for you.  This is really a matter of choice as you may not wish to have your family and friends involved at all.

8 After you get a number of potential dates then start sorting the good from the not-so-good.  Safety is paramount.  If your state has a sex offender register, check it.

From online dating websites get to know the person initially via that site’s internal messaging then progress to email and then to prepaid cell phone. There is no need to give your last name nor your address.  Do share your interests to see if there is compatibility with what you do in addition to who you are. You may take over two to three months to do this and that’s fine.  Take your time.

9 At your first date just be yourself and enjoy yourself. Let someone know beforehand who you’re going out with, where you’ll be going and what time to expect you home.  Meet in a public place where there are other people around. Do NOT give out your home address, make your own way to your meeting place and make you own way home.  In this regard consider pre-arranging a friend to call you mid way through the date and give them a pre-arranged code word to let them know if the date is going well or not.  They can then “rescue” you with the excuse that you have a sick child, and your date will not lose face.

10 Make your date a dinner or lunch or even a coffee date where you can talk.  Gong to the movies on your first date is not a good idea as you will sit there in silence for two hours, pestered by the popcorn eaters behind you – not fun at all.

11 Keep an open mind.  Don’t let the memory of past history of a bad marriage/relationship cause you cloud your judgment about the new person you are meeting.

12 Keep in mind that on online dating sites that cater for single parent dating you are not on your own.  Other single parents realize and understand the challenges encountered when trying to make friends or partners as a single parent. The more you visit your dating sites the more you will feel comforted by this. This facilitates forming wonderful friendships and perhaps a new relationship with someone who is compatible with you as a person, what you do, and accepts your children.

13 Get to know other single parents in your community – usually this is easy when you take and collect your kids at their various sporting and school activities.  This may help with babysitting arrangements as other single parents understand more fully the financial pressures and time constraints you are under.

14 Broach the subject of your kids, never try to hide them. Casually mention them in your conversation with something amusing your child did or said.  Watch your date‘s reaction and then follow your gut instinct.

15 If all is going well tend to mention that you are dating to your kids.  This will get them used to the idea that there may be another person in your, and hence their, lives.  You don’t have to introduce every date to them but do mention that you are going on dates.  In this way they will feel less threatened when you bring your new partner home.

16 Your new partner should be introduced to your kids slowly with emphasis on being a friend rather than being a new parent. Make it clear at the outset that you, and only you, will discipline your kids.

17 If your new partner also has kids, then ensure that each of you are treating each of your kids fairly.  The Brady bunch is not necessarily reality when it comes to blended families.  The road, at times, can be quite rocky here and the relationship may ultimately suffer.  Be mindful of this and work at it – as you would at any relationship to make it a success.

In conclusion always keep in mind that you are entitled to your life and the way you wish to live it, kids or no kids. So if you are wanting romance don’t let being a parent hinder you.

Check out the banner in the right column of this site for access to a reputable Single Parents Dating site.   This site is part of the Word Dating Partners group, a mainstream online dating site with over five million spam-free profiles, worldwide.

Firstly, find a site that caters specifically for BBW.  Studies have shown that the notion that all men are attracted to only women who are skinny and thin is just not true.  A significant proportion are attracted to big beautiful women.  So it is better to locate sites that specifically cater for this niche – both for BBWs and men seeking their company.

These sites also remove the fear of dealing with overweight stereotypes, discrimination and prejudice.  At these sites BBWs can strengthen their confidence and dispel the notion that thin women are always more attractive.

There are certain safety measures that should be kept in mind:

1 Make sure that the BBW dating site is legitimate, has privacy protection, easy to search features and updated member profiles.  The site should look up to date and clean, with a healthy number of registered members.  Sites that have free registration with paid options are preferable to sites that are just free.   When a paid option requires monthly fees, credit card details are required and thus some form of identity is established.  This will help screen out undesirables in the first instance.

2 Avoid providing personal information on initial contact.  This includes personal emails and phone numbers.   Reputable BBW sites (any reputable dating site for that matter) will offer instant messaging, internal mail and even VOIP internal phone systems.   These not only make initial contact easier but also adds in promoting the safety of the members of the site.

3  Meet a person for the first time in a public place such as a cafe, restaurant or coffee shop.

For men, there are certain things that men should keep in mind when establishing contact:

1 Start off with a general compliment that may relate to a common interest like music, TV or films.  Avoid passing any remarks that pertain to anything physical – not until you are better acquainted, otherwise she may think that you are only interested in her photo and only things physical.

2 Don’t come across as too cocky, over-confident and too sure of yourself.  Self-deprecating humor works well – this shows that you don’t take yourself too seriously and yet leave your options open for her to later see you as the strong person you really are.  Don’t overdo it.  Don’t come across as being too insecure.  So don’t unburden your home and work problems on her.

3 Have patience.  Give her a chance to get to know you online before you venture offline.  Women tend to move slower in this area than men – and for good reason.  They need to have some trust.  This can take time.

Check out the banner in the right column of this site for access to a reputable BBW site.   This site is part of the Word Dating Partners group, a mainstream online dating site with over five million spam-free profiles, worldwide.