Solo Parenting

(From our February 2025 Issue)

Jack of All Trades, Master of None

By Scoti Springfield Domeij

What goaded me to renovate my home? I evaluated paying through-the-ceiling fortunes to “just-fix-it-professionals” and reassessed my personal repair potential. Could I leave—

unwanted scratches, holes, or dents?
piles of sawdust, drywall, lumber, or dirt?
a less-than-professional repair?

Yep, sure could! While getting the hang of restoration, I could leave a mess for free.

Fixing My Old House
To the uninitiated, attempting home repair is intimidating. Unskilled at massive demolition and reconstruction, I invested in the essential power tools to fix my old house. My first circulating saw terrified me. I feared losing a finger. My home already missed one appendage—the other parent.

After a hunk-a-handyman stuck a rod with a dangly didlybop into my jammed garbage disposal, performed a split-second twist of his wrist, then charged $50, I decided power tools are “in.” Repair bills were “out.” I watched YouTube, home remodeling shows, bought do-it-yourself books with pictures at thrift stores,and obtained a library card to check out books on plumbing and electricity.

Extreme Home Makeover
My total do-it-yourself (DIY) repertoire? Stool overflow prevention, which involved toilet hugging while contorting to reach into a tiny, foul-smelling place. A $2 garage-sale cast-iron, yellow Kohler sink motivated a dream kitchen remodeling project. After ten return trips to the DIY Parts and Lumber Emporium, I needed a different connector to reconnect two hot water lines. Although my gut preferred metal, I relied on the home improvement retail sales associate’s expertise and installed a flexible plastic tube.

Do you know what uniting one plastic connector and two clamps plus opening one hot water main produces? Noah’s deluge. An explosion of steaming water bombarded the ceiling, walls, and floor. After nine months of breaking my back washing dishes in the bathtub, I restored water to the kitchen!

Solo Parenting and Electricity Scared Me
My new power drill pierced a 2” x 4” stud and 240-volts of thin-stranded aluminum wires wrapped in a black plastic sheath. An electric shock cascaded down my body, and through my tennis shoes and the faded, olive-green linoleum floor. I thanked God for the worn, outdated floor that repulsed me. What dimwit staples a 240V live wire to a stud? Lesson learned? Always look on both sides of a stud before drilling a hole through it.

Practice Using the Right Tools
I can’t remember which side of the miter saw blade trims one board to the perfect length. I measured—twice! After a minimum of three cuts, I ace the crosscut-the-board test. The first cut? I try my best, which isn’t good enough. The second cut? I desire a better-quality result. The third, fourth, fifth cut? Isn’t perfect, but it will do—after applying two-inch putty. Lesson learned? Each new DIY challenge builds self-confidence.

Dig Out Infected Splinters
Home repair teaches me invaluable solo-parenting lessons.

Surge Protection: Have you ever prayed for an uninterruptible power supply to surge protect you from sudden emotional or financial shocks? I regularly beg, “God, please stop all high voltage strikes for just three months.” His strength helps me survive each surge.

Flood Prevention: Are there individuals draining your home of peace? Quickly shut off emotional floods inundating your home. It’s easier to stop the torrent than to clean up the over-charged aftermath.

Remodeling Tip: When crisis hammers home, remove pain nailed into a sensitive heart. Then drive home tenderness. The adjustable clamp (your arms of love) combined with glue (hope-filled affirmations) stabilize weakened joints. When circumstances unbalance my spirit’s equilibrium, my most valuable tool is the Carpenter’s level—trust in God and His steadying wisdom.

Scoti Springfield Domeij has been published in The New York Times, Southwest Art, Havok Journal, and other parenting magazines. Propelled into single parenthood with a four-year-old son and a nine-month-old son, Scoti understands the struggles of other solo parents. © Scoti Springfield Domeij