Love may be sweeter the second time around, but once the bliss of a newfound relationship wears off a little, the reality of being part of a stepfamily sets in. If you are one of the millions of remarried Americans facing the challenge of blending two existing families into one cohesive whole, you are part of a stepcouple—and you know all too well how hard it can be to make your marriage work in sometimes tough terrain. Different parenting styles, finances, relationships with ex-spouses, legal matters, and even seemingly simple issues such as the kinds of chores assigned to children can chisel away at your union if you don’t always make your marriage a priority. Stepcoupling offers advice for stepcouples on how to do just that—all the while strengthening their blended family with a healthy marriage. Susan Wisdom and Jennifer Green provide tips and strategies on dealing with the issues remarried couples face, with a wealth of advice from real-life stepcouples, such as: * Learning to tailor your expectations of your spouse or children and remembering that no family is perfect * Knowing where your boundaries are, whether involving a hostile ex-spouse or a stepchild who demands too much attention * Realizing that traits like flexibility, tolerance, forgiveness, and openness are especially essential in a stepfamily situation * Making “us” time for talking, problem-solving, weekends away, and enjoying your marriage to constantly renew and strengthen your bond as a couple Let this invaluable remarriage manual help you make your stepcouple the foundation of a strong, happy, and successful stepfamily.

The power of prayer is never stronger than in the heart of a stepmom. Faced with overwhelming odds and impossible situations, she seeks comfort and wisdom, courage and solace, and she finds it in the Lord God. She sees tough challenges all around, but she sees her Lord always closer, always holding her tight, helping her build the life she wants. This Book of Prayer will guide you, Stepmom, through your fears and doubts, help you deal with anger and despair, strengthen you with honesty and understanding, and connect you with the joy and gratitude that is a part of your life despite all interferences. You'll find here the safe return to the sacred place the Lord provides, so that you can be the stepmom you want to be and the daughter of God you were born to be. A stepmom needs a warm hug every day, and it's here in these pages. Start your journey of strength and peace here, today. You're not alone. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. (1 Peter 3:9)

What's missing in your stepfamily?If you're in a stepfamily, you may feel as if something is missing. You can't put it into words yet, but you know it's a problem. Maybe you're new to this. Maybe not. Still, everything from badly-behaved exes to parenting rifts causes squabbling that disrupts the harmony in your home. The Stepmom's Book of Boundaries helps you thrive despite rocky relationships, schedule snafus, and more. Stepmom Magazine Contributor and Master Certified Stepfamily Coach Claudette Chenevert provides clear explanations, humorous insights and exercises to help you pave a path to healthier boundaries and more enforceable House Rules-for your own version of the white-picket-fence dream.

An honest and groundbreaking guide to understanding the complicated emotions that develop between stepmothers and children. When faced with often overwhelming challenges, what woman with stepchildren is unfamiliar with that “stepmonster” feeling? Half of all women in the United States will live with or marry a man with children. To guide women new to this role—and empower those who are struggling with it—Wednesday Martin draws upon her own experience as a stepmother. She's frank about the harrowing process of becoming a stepmother, she considers the myths and realities of being married to a man with children, and she counteracts the cultural notion that stepmothers are solely responsible for the problems that often develop. Along the way, she interviews other stepmothers and stepchildren and offers up fascinating insights from literature, anthropology, psychology, and evolutionary biology that explain the little-understood realities of this unique parent-child relationship and—in an unexpected twist—shows why the myth of the Wicked Stepmother is the single best tool for understanding who real stepmothers are and how they feel.

The tips, tricks and support you need to survive stepmotherhood — the perfect gift for every stepmom around You've met the partner of your dreams and have gotten your happily ever after, but now you've taken on a new role: stepmom. And you have no idea what you signed up for. Or maybe you've been a stepmom for a while now, but things are getting you down. Who do you turn to for help? Where is the stepmothering support group that'll give you the advice you need? A book for all the ins and outs of having a blended family? Who actually gets how hard being a stepmom can be? We do. We are the women who have chosen stepmotherhood and lived to tell the tale. This parenting guide holds our solutions to help you: Brave the crazy ex demands Overcome the financial hurdles of a blended family Be prepared for the legal battles and custody arrangements Handle disrespectful children Nourish your relationship Manuever the emotional breakdowns of stepmotherhood Build your own stepmom's club Understand why you need your partner to have your back Written by stepmoms for stepmoms, these tips, anecdotes, and words of advice will help you find success and support within your new family. We are the Stepmoms' Club — your club — and we're here to help you.

The stepmother's role often is ambiguous and underappreciated, and frequently it carries unrealistic expectations. The book answers women's concerns and questions, including: How can I be a caretaker and a key emotional connector in the family if the children don't accept my influence? How shoud I cope with children who are confused about their family and torn between loyalty to their biological mother and me? When should I step back in conflicts and when should I insist that my husband stand up for me? In addition it addresses the spiritual and emotional climate of the home, providing perspective and guidelines to help stepmothers and their families thrive.

One of three Americans is today a stepparent, a stepchild, or a stepsibling. That means there are lots of stepmothers and ex-wives out there wrestling with resentment, jealousy, anxiety, anger, and despair over their relationship with the “other woman” in their life. That’s where stepmother/ex-wife team extraordinaire Jennifer Newcomb Marine and Carol Marine step in. No One’s the Bitch is their straight-talking, handholding walk through what is typically a very lonely minefield. Whether women just want to create a neutral, “business” partnership or actually, gulp, to become friends, this book shows them how to reach their goal through ten powerful steps, with chapter titles such as “Own Your Own Crap,” “Collaborate,” and “Communicate.” The authors also recount their own journey, providing ample hope and reassurance to all women struggling to keep a blended family together.