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Stepparent Tip 1: Be Ready for Hot and Cold

October 8, 2018

A stepparent recently asked me, “Ron, what do you do with the hot and cold from stepkids? I mean, one minute they love me and the next they want nothing to do with me.”

 

When a child feels confused about liking you or disloyal about it they back away. So here are some tips for building a bridge to your stepchild’s heart. First, have compassion for how hard this is for them. They’re not trying to manipulate you. They like you are just confused about your relationship. Give them some grace. Second, enjoy it when they are leaning toward you but realize they may go back and forth. Give them time and who knows with patience they might lean towards you more and more.

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If you want to enter a blended family marriage well, this is the book for you. Aimed at engaged or pre-engaged couples who have at least one child from a previous relationship, Preparing to Blend offers wise counsel on parenting, finances, establishing family identity, and daily routines for your new life together. Within these pages you will learn how to: - predict common issues - define expectations - create solutions

About FamilyLife Blended®

FamilyLife Blended® provides  biblically-based resources that help prevent re-divorce, strengthen stepfamilies, and help break the generational cycle of divorce.

About Ron L. Deal

Ron L. Deal is the Director of blended family ministries at FamilyLife®, and is the author/coauthor of the books The Smart StepfamilyThe Smart Stepdad, The Smart Stepmom, Dating and the Single Parent, and The Remarriage Checkup. Ron voices the FamilyLife Blended short feature and is one of the most widely read authors on stepfamily living in the country. He is a licensed marriage and family therapist who frequently appears in the national media, including FamilyLife Today® and Focus on the Family, and he conducts marriage and family seminars around the countryRon and his wife, Nan, have been married since 1986 and have three boys.

Contact FamilyLife Blended® with Ron L. Deal

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FamilyLife ®
100 Lake Hart Drive
Orlando FL 32832
 
Telephone Number
1-800-FL-TODAY
(1-800-358-6329)