Tag Archive for: Relationships

132: Is It Really Parental Alienation? How to Recognize the Signs and Protect Your Family with Amy J.L. Baker, PhD

When a child suddenly begins rejecting one parent, it's natural to wonder what's happening. Is it simply part of adjusting to life between two homes? Is it the result of conflict after divorce? Or could someone be intentionally (or…

131: Eve Rodsky on the Mental Load in Blended Families

Are you the one tracking the dentist appointments, school forms, birthday gifts, custody schedules, groceries, and all the tiny details no one else seems to notice? That invisible work has a name: the mental load. In this episode…

130: The Comments Every Stepmom Hates and Exactly How to Respond

We've all been there. Someone makes a comment about being a stepmom that they probably mean well... but it still stings. "You knew what you were getting into." "At least you get a break." "They're not really your kids." In…

112. How to Talk to Your Stepkids Without Conflict: 12 Tips That Work

 

The Passionate Stepmom Is Not Made, She’s Built

I’m a mom and a stepmom. I know both jobs are two of the hardest, sometimes most thankless jobs on the planet. But one of those roles has been more of a personal challenge for me than the other. Can you guess which one it is? Yup…

Stepmoms: Quit Comparing Yourself to Your Partner’s Ex!

I’ve ALWAYS obsessed with comparing myself to my husband’s ex and now I’m making it public. I fixated on her looks, parenting skills, her previous and current relationship with my husband, her hatred for me. The list goes on and on. This…
young frustrated woman screaming with closed eyes

The Ugly Truth About The Ex

When I came in to this stepmum gig, I thought I was pretty well prepared. I was a stepchild myself, had successfully navigated the relationship with my kids then stepmum…how hard could it be? Harder than I could ever have imagined. Like…

5 Harmful Habits Stepmoms Need To Break

As stepmoms, we spend so much time supporting one another in an “us against the world” mentality, which is awesome and important and so valid. But with that mentality, we often don't want to see that we ourselves might have developed some…
Man With His Thumb Up

Why Your Husband Says “Yes” to His Ex

Do you hate it when your husband’s difficult ex asks for something and your husband jumps on the yes wagon? Or, even worse, when she wants something seemingly unreasonable – and even though you can tell from a mile away that he’ll regret…
Stepmum Drawing a Heart in the Sand

Journey to a Happy Heart

I once asked the question on social media what words people associate with stepfamily, stepmom and step kids. It is incredible to me the number of negative word associations with these phrases. Words came up like the other, difficult, adjustment,…
Mother and Daughter

‘I Don’t Have A Stepmom’

My daughter and I were cuddled up on the couch watching something together. Somehow, the subject of her brother came up and how I was his stepmom. No big deal. But then she turned to me and said, ‘Well, you are his stepmom. But I don’t…
Stepmum smiling

4 Traits of Highly Effective Stepmoms

1. Self-Awareness It’s healthy for every person and parent out there to have developed a generous sense of self-awareness, but for a stepmom, it can be particularly useful. No matter what your situation as a stepmom is, whether it’s…

Why Stepmums Get Jealous & Insecure in the Most Stable Relationships

You’re not weak or silly for feeling unsettled in your relationship when your partner’s past is so present in your home and family. It’s not weird to feel grossed out by anything that suggests previous intimacy. It’s not wrong to feel sad that our first experience of having a child with our partner is not their first experience.
couple people woman relaxation

The Problem With Inclusivity in Online Stepmom Communities

One of the biggest, most universal struggles of being a stepmom is feeling like an outsider, in your own family, in your extended family, in mommy circles, and in the general parenting community. Online stepmom communities are meant for us to have a safe space where we all feel like we belong. The problem is, we all don’t...