Irresponsible relatives come in many forms, both intentional and unwitting. How can parents encourage family unity, while protecting their children from relatives’ recklessness? 1) Deliberate Doters Grandparents and others love to shower little ones with gifts, flattery, and attention. How…
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“You are dating a man that has three kids!” I heard that saying from several people in my family, and I was fully aware of that. The man I was dating was also divorced, and had custody of those three…
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Divorce statistics are higher than ever before and continue to rise. Many of the marriages that break down and come to an end do so after adding children to their union. When the divorce is over, most people will eventually…
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Can Being Too Involved Bite You in the Butt? When my husband (then fiance’) and I moved in together prior to marriage (oh the shame!), I felt that although he spent time with his children and provided for them financially,…
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Had I known in my early twenties that I would someday be a step-mother, I might have run the other way, screaming. Did I purposely set out to meet and fall in love with a previously married man with a…
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How to handle it when a parent puts you second after remarriage First of all, feel free to express yourself to your parents about how you feel. Your mother or father may not be be aware that they are putting…
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Blended families are families that include one parent with children from a previous marriage and another parent also with children from a previous marriage. Parent-child relationships are status relationships at law based on fiduciary or trust responsibilities. Legally a…
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Becoming a stepparent is not always the easiest process. However, it can ultimately be a very rewarding one. You can find closeness and love with a stepchild that is equal to that of a biological child. Any great stepparent will…
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I came across this topic and thought to myself, now here’s something I can talk about. I am a mother of three teenagers. A year ago I started dating a man who has a 3 year old son. I have…
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Being a father is a difficult enough in its own right. Primarily you want the best for your children, and are willing to make sacrifices in order to provide the best. Furthermore, the constant worrying of whether you’re doing the…
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Reasons to Include Your Own Children in Your Wedding A wedding is joyful ritual that invites friends and family to witness a commitment between two people and the family they raise. What better a time to include children who are…
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Divorce hurts everyone. In some families there are more hurt feelings than in others, but overall, when parents divorce it changes everyone’s lives. Sharing custody can be the best thing that you can do in a bad situation. Divorce sometimes…
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Today your chances of being a step parent at some point in your life is a high probability. Unless you can assure that your marriage will last for a life-time, that your spouse will never die or leave you, you…
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Blended families should be treated as you would a regular family. All should have the same values, rules and treatments. Children, especially, need to see that this new blended family is being viewed as if it was or is their…
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Is shaken not stirred a recipe for a blended family? Yes, there are going to be times you are shaken as well as painfully stirred by emotions within the concoction that is a blended family. Having successfully navigated and survived…
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Children look to us for guidance, comfort and protection. It is a natural reaction to want to make your own child feel comfortable and secure in their new environment. Bringing together two families is a big decision, not to mention…
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Celebrating holidays can be challenging once a divorce and remarriage has taken place. Depending on what kind of custody arrangements exist and what kind of relationship the adults have will determine how creative you need to be. When you have…
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There will be disagreements in families whether single or blended. However, in blended families, problems can be more complex and more magnified, because there are different mindsets and orientations. When these perspectives and points of views do not mesh, there…
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Even when you aren’t married, if you think that your partner is “the one,” then you should probably start thinking about establishing a good relationship with your future in-laws. Although you may think that your in-laws and yourself are not…
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Disciplining the children in a blended family is something that needs to be done with much consistency. If you discipline the step children much harsher than you discipline your own children, then you are showing favoritism to your own children….
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We as adults take so much time to understand change and even longer to accept it .Its always difficult to be adaptive to change all the time but if you can do that life is easier as ‘change is the…
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Adults living with parents: Steps to making it work Becoming an adult is a much-welcomed adjustment for a child or teenager living with parents; when you want your freedom to do anything you want without your parents laying down the…
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A stepchild needs security and to rebuild trust. At some stage in their lives, they have been subject to some kind of disruption which has led them to becoming a stepchild. The psychological fragility of a stepchild may not show…
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At some point in their lives, most people have had a conversation with someone they’ve just met and heard the phrase “we have a blended family”. Those of us who are actually part of a blended family will identify with…
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Stepchild, the origin of this word is Old-English, means bereaved; it actually originated from the word, sad orphan. With the roots of this term being so ingrained with ugliness, does it surprise anyone, the difficulty children have disclosing “I am…
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When I became a stepmother nobody really explained how to difficult things were going to be. My stepdaughter was almost three when I entred into the picture. She was a delight to have around. We instantly got along. I didn’t…
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Show Your Heart When we decided to be married, my wife and I each brought children to the union from past relationships. She was a divorcee, and I a widower: both emotionally battered in some way or other. The kids…
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Absolutely stepparents should have parental rights; they are parents. Stepparents are the only kind of parents who are expected to do everything a ‘real’ parent does, yet still are not considered actual parents. My daughter has two fathers. She has…
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Dealing with blended families can be a very trying situation as each adult has had their own way of handling their children since before you yourself had come into the picture. Upon the union of two adults you should always…
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When two families become one it is an adjustment for all involved. Bad mouthing an ex or stepparent under-minds the whole process. If you are a new stepparent and have bad feelings towards the your spouse’s ex, it is very…
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