We have all innocently joked about it; when one spouse is away on a business trip, we state we are going to be single-parenting for the time being. The reality of being the sole provider is something two-parent couples will never fully understand. Everything from making breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks, to driving the kids to school, extra-curricular activities, and parties, to doing the homework with them, reading to them at night, all while holding down a job, is just part of life.

The United States Census Bureau reveals that 80.6 percent of single parents are mothers. Today, approximately 17.4 million kids under the age of 18, are being raised without a father. Still, schools across the country hold "father and son/daughter" days where treats are served for the dads and kids to enjoy. While it's a great idea in theory, there are millions of boys and girls who cannot partake in this activity.

Whitney Kittrell has been a single parent for the last three years, raising two kids.

Her first and foremost goal has been to ensure her kids know they are loved unconditionally.

"I made a promise with myself that I would do anything I could, even if it meant going out of my comfort zone, to give my kids a 'normal' life and the same experiences as other kids," she wrote on her Facebook page.

Her pledge means she has taken trips with just the three of them, taught her son how to play catch, and just about anything to create "countless memories."

Kittrell was stumped when her son Lucas came home from kindergarten with an invitation.

Arrowhead Elementary School in Santa Clara, Utah, was hosting a "Dads and Doughnuts Day" event. Kittrell said she felt her heart sink.

Still, she came up with a clever solution.

She sat down with her son and offered to have his grandfather take him to the activity. To Kittrell's surprise, he turned down her offer.

Lucas didn't want his grandfather to attend the "Dads and Doughnuts Day," he wanted his mom there.

His explanation was simple and wiser beyond his years. "I want you to go. You're my mom and dad," Lucas told her.

To get in the dad spirit, Kittrell donned a T-shirt, baseball cap, and pencilled in facial hair.

"I was so embarrassed but I couldn't help but smile when he introduced me to his little friends saying 'this is my mom... she's my dad too so I brought her,'" Kittrell shared on her Facebook post.

Despite her love and sacrifice for her kids, Kittrell still doubts herself, wondering if she is succeeding.

"When I went to leave he ran after me and hugged me tight around my neck and whispered 'mom... I know that you'll always be there and do anything for me. Thank you. I love you,' kissed my cheek and ran off," she said.

Kittrell shared her experience on Facebook and Instagram where she received thousands of comments and likes.

"You are for sure doing it right! Those words he said sum up how awesome you are doing. Way to step out and make him feel special!" one user wrote.

The comments and positive response have touched Kittrell.

"It's been very overwhelming seeing the response," Kittrell told ABC News.

She said it's not just single parents commending her but also kids.

"I've had kids that were raised by single parents reach out and thank me to let me know that (we) are not alone," she revealled.

"I'm just an ordinary mom. I'm doing what anybody else will do, but as a single parent a lot of times you feel alone and isolated, but there are other people that are going through the exact same thing," Kittrell shared. "I'm so grateful to see the positive impact it's making."

The school also held the "Moms and Muffins Day," but the single mom couldn't attend the event as she is studying to become a respiratory therapist.

Kittrell knows she is not the only mom raising her kids alone and attending these dad days.

"I've heard of other moms going and not necessarily wearing a beard but dressing up like a guy and going so I said, 'That'd be funny why not?'"

Kittrell said no one batted an eyelash at the school when she showed up dressed like a dad.

"I didn't do it for the attention of dressing up like that. I knew it would make him laugh," she explained. "I knew it was something he would think is funny. He helped me pick the paint out for the beard and it was really fun."

She says when she dressed up she knew her son would laugh about it.

"I came out of the bathroom and he just started dying laughing, saying, 'You look like a daddy!'" she remembers.

Kittrell reflects on parenthood and how "so many people get stuck on what the world thinks you should do, and you really feel like you're letting your kids down—and in all reality, you just have to do your best."

"I think as parents in general, we need to stop being so hard on ourselves– do your best and that's all you can ask," she told InsideEdition.com. She advices that kids are "going to love you no matter what."

Source: lifebuzz

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