Name:	Liza
Online Name:	Lexuss
Country:	Canada
State:	BC
Age:	20
Birthday:	November 18th, 1978
Special Talents:	enter here
Hobbies:	Cooking, reading, watching movies, working out
Where do you work?	I'm a student, I don't have time to work :)
Were you working when you became pregnant? If yes, doing what?	Yes, at a restaurant
Are you in school?	Yes, university
If you've graduated, what is your degree?	enter here
How old were you when you had your first child?	17
Did you keep? abort? give up for adoption?:	Kept him
Was it the first time you had sex?	No
Were you and the father a couple?	Yes
Are you still together?	Yes
If you're not together, is the father involved? How is he involved?	enter here
Were you using protection against pregnancy? If yes, what kind?	Sometimes, if we did, we used condoms
If not, was it because you were trying to get pregnant? Please explain:	I wasn't concerned about getting pregnant, if it happend I would have been happy, and I was, but if it didn't happen that was ok too
Did you know how you would support the baby? Support yourself?	yes
Were you using protection against STDs?	Yes, and no, he was my first, and he knew he didn't have anything, so it wasn't a concern
How many children do you have?	1
What are their names, ages, birthdays?	Brandon, 3 years old, September 6th, 1996
Was the pregnancy emotionally difficult?	No, I had a lot of support from my boyfriend and my family, as well as from his family
Was the pregnancy physically difficult? i.e. were there any medical problems?	I problems, easy delivery too
What was/is the most difficult experience as a young mother?	Making enough time to spend with my son, as well as having enough money to buy him things I wish I could get for him
Was your family helpful/supportive?	Very supportive
Did you stay at home with your parents?	yes, we lived there until my son was over a year old
Did your family help support you? The baby? Emotionally, financially, or both?	yes, both, they help emotionally and they also helped us out if we needed something that we didn't have money for
Do they support you now? Emotionally, financially, or both?	they still support us emotionally, but we don't need them to support us financially anymore
Did/do you need public assistance? How did/does that make you feel?	I did need it before, but now I don't. I hated having to be on assistance, it made me feel ashamed and embarrased
Was the father's family involved with the pregnancy? Emotionally, financially, or both?	yes, both
Did the father's family help support you? Emotionally, financially, or both?	they helped emotionally, but not really financially
Does the child have a relationship with the paternal Grandparents?	yes, he has an awesome relationship with both my parents, as well as my boyfriends parents
Do you feel accepted by people your age?	yes
Do you feel like you have it harder than people your own age without children?	yes, they don't have as much responsiblity emotionally or financially as young parents do. They only have to worry about themselves, not another life.
Are you happy with the decisions you have made? (Be honest. . .it's ok to feel bad, we all do sometimes)	yes, I wouldn't change anything
What are your personal goals? (goals for yourself as an individual not as a mother)	finish school and get a job
Have your goals changed since you became a parent?	not really, it will just take a little bit longer to reach them
Do you feel that reaching your goals will be more difficult now that your a teen parent?	yeah, it is harder, but it will be worth it. Difficult situations also make you a stronger person if you have to overcome situations that are more difficult, so I think that I'll be a better person for having to overcome a difficult situation, as opposed to having a easier time accomplishing my goals.
What would you tell a (school age) 12-18 year old girl that wanted to get pregnant?	Everything will be easier once you have set up everything in your life, like an education and a good job. Then if you still want kids have them, your life will be easier, and you'll have the satisfaction of knowing that you've done everything right for your kids
How do you think being a Young Mother has changed you?	it's made me more responsible and sensitive to other people's problems
How do you think society looks upon teen pregnancy?	they frown upon it, they think all young mothers are irresponsible and bad mothers and role models. Some of us may be like that, but some of us are better mothers than women older than us.
Why do you think there are so many teen parents?	maybe they want to be a mom, but they don't realize what it really takes to be a good mother, also they may be too embarrased to talk to their parents about sex, and they may get information from friends or their boyfriends who don't know about birth control either
List 5 Pro's to being a teen Mother?	I'll be close to my son, because it'll be easier to relate to him, because I'll remember what it was like to be his age. Since I'm young I may live longer than older mothers and get to see him do a lot of things. I'll be able to enjoy spending time alone with my boyfriend when we're in our fourties, instead of starting a family then. I'll also be able to enjoy spending time with my grandchildren, because I'll be young enough to play with them, like they were my own kids. I may even get to spend a lot of time with my great grandchildren
List 5 Con's to being a teen Mother?:	Not having enough time to spend with my son (too much homework). Not having enough money (some older parents have this problem also). Not being able to do things at the drop of a hat like my friends without children. More stress than other people my age without children. Missing out on going out with friends because I can't get a babysitter (not that big of a deal anyways, I'd rather spend time with my son and my boyfriend anyways).
What do you expect to get out of being a member of Young Mothers?:	Nothing really, I just think that me and my son will be good friends because we're close in age, it'll be easier to understand were he's coming from, because it'll be easier to remember what things were like when I was his age.
Today's Date:	Oct 19th, 1999