Tag: stepfamily life

Parenting Advice: Inside the December 2016 Issue

Parenting AdviceDad’s Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Days: Ways to Help Your Partner Parent Better by Mary T. Kelly, MA

“When I got out of bed this morning, I tripped on the skateboard and, by mistake, I dropped my sweater in the sink—while the water was running …. I think I’ll move to Australia.”

—excerpt from “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day,” by Judith Viorst

The opening excerpt is from a wildly popular children’s book that kids can relate to because, in truth, kids have bad days of their own. And, though your partner may not admit this, he has definitely experienced a slew of terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days, too—as a dad—and he doesn’t feel very good about it. Continue reading “Parenting Advice: Inside the December 2016 Issue”

Stepmom Advice: Inside the December 2016 Issue

Stepmom AdviceStepMom Magazine’s Round Up of the Year’s Best Expert Tips and Stepmom Advice

Oh, dear, what a year! From the fate of the U.S. presidency to the Chicago Cubs’ first World Series win in 108 years, every aspect of life seemed to hang in the balance. Yet, none of it kept our contributors from sharing sound advice that helped us stay the course.

This month we round up 2016’s best expert tips for stepmoms and their stepfamilies, followed by excerpts from this year’s prior issues of StepMom Magazine. In sifting through them, we realized how ready we are to leave all the other drama behind. How ‘bout you?

Yeah, it’s time. Read on, reboot and get ready for 2017! …To read the rest of this article, log in to your account and download the December 2016 issue. Don’t have an account? Click here to subscribe.

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Stepfamily Holiday Blues: Inside the December 2016 Issue

Stepfamily HolidayStepfamily Holiday Blues: Learning to Celebrate a Season for Two by Claudette Chenevert

IT’S CHRISTMAS MORNING. You wake up all excited but soon realize that this year is different. This Christmas will not be spent opening presents with your stepkids or even your own kids.

This Christmas it’s going to be just you and your spouse. A lump forms in your throat, as you think about it. You know it’s just another day, right? So what if you don’t have a houseful of squealing kids shouting “YES! I got my new phone!” or “Thanks for this gift. I really like it!”

Last year—for the first time, as we’re now parents of adult children—Bernard and I experienced Christmas without any of our kids. Continue reading “Stepfamily Holiday Blues: Inside the December 2016 Issue”

Stepmom Leah Shafer: Inside the November 2016 Issue

Stepmom Leah ShaferStepmom Leah Shafer Is in the House: Can We Get an “Amen!” for This Amazing Woman? Interview by Brenda Ockun, StepMom Magazine Founder & Publisher

Leah Shafer is one amazing stepmom—and mom. She travels internationally as a gospel recording artist. She works with the Denver Broncos, singing the U.S. national anthem at the team’s playoff and AFC Championship games. Continue reading “Stepmom Leah Shafer: Inside the November 2016 Issue”

Stepfamily Holidays: Inside the November 2016 Issue

Stepfamily HolidaysWhose Holiday Is It, Anyway? Make Your Stepfamily Holidays Merry and Bright by Claudette Chenevert and Christine G. Adamo

Have your plans ever been foiled by an ex wanting to take a spur-of-the-moment holiday trip sans kids? A wacky plan to which your partner said, “Yeah, we’ll take ’em!”— thus extinguishing your sugar plum visions of dinner and dancing with the sweetie on New Year’s Eve? (We have.)

Maybe your at-home stepfamily Christmas celebration was derailed by a text Continue reading “Stepfamily Holidays: Inside the November 2016 Issue”

Stepfamily Secrets: Inside the October 2016 Issue

Stepfamily SecretsIs Your Stepfamily Lying to You? The Secrets Stepkids, Partners and Exes Keep by Claudette Chenevert

Many stepmoms get frustrated when their stepkids lie about one thing or another. The lies can be major, in an attempt to gloss over breaking curfew, doing drugs, drinking alcohol or stealing. They also can be a series of small lies related to homework, chores or anything else imaginable.

One of the reasons stepmoms seek my help is to deal with such situations. They’re simply not sure of how to handle lying—whether it’s their stepkids fibbing, their partners routinely omitting key information or the exes in their lives embellishing on reality until it’s unrecognizable. Continue reading “Stepfamily Secrets: Inside the October 2016 Issue”

Stepmom Advice: Inside the October 2016 Issue

Stepmom AdviceHit Rock Bottom, Stepmom? Pick Yourself Up and Move Your Family Forward in 4 Steps by Amy Bellows, PhD

I grew up in a stepfamily and had played the role of stepmom once before. Going into my remarriage, I was confident I knew what I was getting myself into. I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but I was committed, in love and ready for the challenge. I learned an important lesson almost immediately: Every stepfamily situation and relationship is different. Continue reading “Stepmom Advice: Inside the October 2016 Issue”

Stepmom Problems: Inside the October 2016 Issue

Stepmom ProblemsThe Angry Stepmom: A Guide to Letting Go and Living Well by Brenda Snyder, LCSW

I have grown to realize that the old adage “It takes one to know one!” wholly applies to us stepmoms. No matter how supportive my family and friends have been throughout the years, it is only sister stepmoms who really get it: feelings of invisibility, red-faced awkwardness at family gatherings and concealed hurt when our stepchildren treat us with hostility or apathy. Continue reading “Stepmom Problems: Inside the October 2016 Issue”

Stepfamily Development: In the September 2016 Issue

Stepfamily DevelopmentNavigating Your Stepfamily’s Journey: Understanding the Stages of Stepfamily Development by Christina Roach, LMHC, NCC, DCC

Picture it: You meet the guy of your dreams. The only hiccup—if you would call it that—is that he comes with a kid in tow. You tell yourself it’s no big deal.

Anyways, how hard could it be? Fast forward a few months and you quickly discover that living in step is not what you had anticipated. Heck, it may be nowhere near what you had envisioned! Continue reading “Stepfamily Development: In the September 2016 Issue”

Stepmoms and Widowers: In the September 2016 Issue

Stepmoms and WidowersMarried to a Widower: Valuable Advice From Stepmoms Who’ve Been There by Claudette Chenevert

Stepfamilies are not created equally. We know this from reading one another’s forum posts, seeking out blogs and listening to one another’s stories. The challenges we face are as complex as our families themselves.

One type of stepfamily dynamic we don’t seem to talk or hear enough about is being married to a former widower. According to The Holmes-Rahe Life Stress Inventory, which is a ranking of events and their impact on our ability to readjust socially, the death of a spouse holds the No. 1 spot as a stressor in people’s lives. Continue reading “Stepmoms and Widowers: In the September 2016 Issue”