http://www.stepcoupling.com Just another WordPress weblog Wed, 20 Aug 2008 01:54:17 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Ever notice how STUCK you can get? Ever notice how you and your partner spin around and around getting hung up on the same stuff – often around childrearing, money and ex-spouses. You get fixed in your own feelings and ways of doing things; you have a ... http://www.stepcoupling.com/getting-unstuck-in-your-stepcouple-reaching-out-for-help/2008/08/19/ Teenaged stepdaughters… a force to reckon with! We were invited to our friends’ house for Thanksgiving dinner. When we were getting ready to leave the house, my stepdaughter came out of her room wearing the WORST OUTFIT. It was edgy, ugly and provocative…everything I hated. I asked her ... http://www.stepcoupling.com/stepmoms-and-teenagers-can-get-along-if-you-play-your-cards-right-2/2008/07/14/ A Stretch for Stepcouples As a counselor, I hear a lot of stories, many of which amaze me: Mom was married 4 times. One of my stepfathers sexually abused me. I saw my stepfather hit my mother. My dad left us for another woman when I was 7. Mom was ... http://www.stepcoupling.com/how-do-you-give-what-you-didn%e2%80%99t-get-as-a-child/2008/06/19/ Summer is here! That means spending more time with stepchildren who are out of school on summer break. For many stepcouples it means an extended visit from children who live elsewhere the rest of the year. Here are some tips for stepcouples and stepparents to make the ... http://www.stepcoupling.com/summer-visitation-in-stepfamiliesmaking-memories-or-surviving-mayhem/2008/06/05/ A mother and her boyfriend fell in love and decided to get married When Mom told her kids the news, the younger girl said “Oh”…then paused and asked the question, “Does that mean that when you get divorced from him, we’ll have to go to his house on the ... http://www.stepcoupling.com/from-the-mouths-of-babes/2008/05/28/ Two different stories of early angst: We loved having our mom all to ourselves before she remarried. It was just the 3 of us. We were close. After the marriage, everything changed. Sometimes we’d get her to ourselves, but more often than not she was with him ... http://www.stepcoupling.com/adjustment-pains-how-to-get-through-them/2008/05/08/ During early arguments, I’d hear myself saying, “What were you thinking when you married her?” Every time I was frustrated with his children, I’d blame his ex for my having to raise their children after she messed them up. The angrier I got, the more I blamed ... http://www.stepcoupling.com/changing-your-story-a-process/2008/04/16/ Cinderella, fatherless child, was raised by an angry widowed stepmother with two overly indulged daughters of her own. Cinderella was cast aside as a servant girl who could do no right. Who knew or cared anything about her situation? No one. It’s just the way it ... http://www.stepcoupling.com/poor-cinderella-grew-up-in-the-wrong-time/2008/03/24/ Every time they planned an outing, all the kids would get excited except one, his daughter Kelly. She never wanted any part. Every time they did household chores as a family, she refused to participate. All the kids loved it when Jane (the new stepmom) cooked their favorites, except Kelly. ... http://www.stepcoupling.com/the-biggest-pain-provides-the-biggest-gift-a-story-for-stepmothers/2008/03/11/ Young or new stepfamilies are not usually easy, warm or fun places to be. The kids are reeling from the losses in their lives and trying to adjust. So are the adults. Let’s face it – nobody plans on divorce and remarriage! New stepfamilies are anything but cohesive. ... http://www.stepcoupling.com/building-stepfamily-cohesiveness-from-scratch/2008/02/29/