If you’ve never heard the word “mommune” before, then here’s what it actually is.
“Mommunes, a play on the word ‘communes’, are part of a trend of changing living
situations as the traditional nuclear family structure evolves,” BBC explains.
You see, there are about 15 million single moms in the US at the moment, and many of them cannot afford to buy a house or they don’t have enough time to spend working so they can make ends meet for their families.
Thankfully, many of them have decided to change their view of the world and see their lives from a new perspective.
So, several moms across the US, but also all over the world, have turned to their best friends and other single moms, who are willing to share the responsibilities that raising a family brings along.
When Samantha Best, 24, a social media influencer from New Plymouth, New Zealand, split up with her partner last year, she realized that being a single mom and providing for her 4-year-old son was harder than she had initially expected.
So, she decided to move in with her best friend, Lauren, who was also a single mom living with her 5-year-old daughter.
The two women didn’t have to think twice. They arranged stuff and soon Samantha and Kaelin moved in with Lauden and Haidyn so that the women could raise their kids as a supportive unit.
“Lauren and I are inseparable. We moved into a house together in May this year after I decided to move back to Auckland for better work opportunities,” Samantha told the New York Post.
Since they moved in together, the two single moms have split finances in order to make it work, and they have been doing stuff as a family.
At the same time, they also make sure their kids spend time with their dads as well, since co-parenting is what they have both opted for in order for their children to develop healthy relationships with both parents.
This family arrangement has proved really beneficial for both mothers, they confirm.
They have more free time because there’s always at least one adult in the house to take care of the kids, and there’s always a friend around to open their hearts to.
They enjoy wine nights watching “Love Island” together, while they have noticed that them living together has benefitted the kids, too.
“I was sad when I thought Kaelin would be by himself, but it’s so different now with Haidyn around, he has definitely come out of his shell as she is older than he is,” Samantha said. “He definitely looks up to her.”
At the same time, the two women get a lot of questions about whether they’re involved in a romantic relationship together, but they make it clear that they’re just best friends.
‘Everything is new when you’re fresh out of a break up so we’re taking time to work on ourselves and then we’ll eventually get back on the dating scene,’ Samantha told the Daily Mail.