My [24F] son [8M] is meeting his Dad [25M] for the first time today. How can I support him (my son)/make this easier?

So I'm a single mom to my awesome little dude. His dad has never been in the picture before. We were very young when we had him, in high-school. I wasn't ready for a relationship and he wasn't ready to be a Dad. He (my son's father) never met him as a baby (he didn't want to) and has had zero contact until now.

He (my son's dad) got in touch with me last month and said that he regretted never getting in touch and that he was interested in knowing more about our life and if I was open to letting them meet. He wasn't a bad guy, we were both just scared kids. He seemed truly regretful that he was never involved and said it's been eating him for years and he would like to start paying child support and have a relationship.

I asked my son if he was curious about meeting his dad. We have spoken in the past about him a little bit but nothing too in depth. We've talked about how sometimes kids only have 1 parent at home and he has a friend with a single mom too, so he has a basic understanding about having 1 parent and it's his normal. He has a kid's book called Raising You Alone which was a great book about having just 1 parent. Anyway, I asked if he was curious about meeting his daddy and he said that he was and seemed excited to see him.

I know this can be an extremely sensitive thing and I feel unprepared for how he might feel suddenly meeting his dad after 8 years of never seeing him. We are going to McDonald's all together for lunch (obviously I will be there) for their first meeting. My son is excited but I can tell he's nervous.

What are some things I can do to make this easier and less scary? Some good boundaries in the beginning? I'm excited for my son to meet his dad and it will be good to see him again after 8 years but I feel underprepared as a mother for the first time.

TL;DR what are some things I can do to help my son meeting his dad for the first time go smoothly?

Submitted February 11, 2021 at 03:23PM by play829dh https://ift.tt/3adbHi7