Ask The Divorce Coach: Is The Ex-Wife Too Close For Comfort?

Question: I am a widow with no children. I have been dating a man for over a year now who has two children (14 and 18). We are in a committed relationship. He has been divorced for 5 years. He and his ex wife continue to get together for holidays, birthdays, family reunions, special occasions [...]

The Evil Stepmother: Do You Care if She Cares For Your Children?

Cinderella mop the floors. Cinderella bring me tea. Cinderella, Cinderella, CINDERELLA!!!! The picture that society has painted of step-moms is evil, ugly, rotten and very sad. According to Cinderella and other stories with stepmothers, these women only love their biological children and they are incredibly mean or they are young attractive women that the ex [...]

Top 10 Co-Parenting Tips For Divorced Parents

Submitted by: Shirley Cress Dudley Top 10 Co-Parenting Tips For Divorced Parents 1- Keep contact to a minimum One phone call a day is excessive, several text messages a day is extremely excessive.  If you have a subject related to the kids- speak briefly and clearly about your expectations.  Emails are better than phone calls, [...]

Time For Yourself in a Blended Family

Submitted by blended family expert, Shirley Cress Dudley Being a stepparent is tough.  Really tough. You want to keep your spouse happy, their kids happy, your kids happy (if you have some biological kids) and usually anyone else that comes within three feet of you happy. Admit it… you’re the one in the family that’s [...]

When Your Ex Has Someone New

Submitted by Deborah Moskovitch  “How could I have been replaced so quickly!” my friend Beth wondered. We were discussing her husband’s soon-to-be new wife; she felt shock and disbelief as to how he could find a new “serious” partner so soon after their divorce. Our ex-spouses’ new partners was the focus of discussion one afternoon [...]

Planning Travel for the Holidays

Submitted by blended family expert, Shirley Cress Dudley Have you ever sat down, the week before Thanksgiving, and realized that no one talked about visitation?  You don’t know who’s staying with whom or what days you are celebrating holidays…it’s just crazy to not plan ahead! Coordinating the Schedules Planning your calendar makes life easier for [...]

Ex-spouse keeps changing the holiday schedule – what to do?

A Q&A with blended family expert, Shirley Cress Dudley A Blended Family Mom asks: We can’t plan our holidays because my husband’s ex-spouse keeps changing the visitation schedule.  We want to plan a vacation with all of our kids, but we can’t do it, unless we get definite visitation dates from my husband’s ex.   My [...]

Top Ten Signs of a Wicked Stepmother

Submitted by Shirley Cress Dudley 1.  You ask your husband to choose between you and his kids.  You see the kids as competition and you’re determined to win. 2.  You don’t know much about your stepkids You spend all of your time focusing on your own kids and your new husband and don’t see the [...]

What Remarried Dads Owe Their Step Mom Wives

Submitted by Joel Schwartzberg When Hollywood superstar Sandra Bullock married TV celebrity Jesse James, she took on the most challenging part of her life – not just his wife, but stepmother to his five-year-old daughter Sunny. Fresh from playing a reluctant romantic partner in The Proposal, Bullock jumped into her reality role with complete commitment, [...]

Are You a Noncustodial Dad who is a Disney Dad?

Do you get nervous when it’s time for your child(ren) to visit? Do you want everything to be perfect and your child(ren) happy at all times? Do you try to make wonderful plans, over the top, AMAZING activities each time they come over? Do you ignore your spouse and other family members during the visit? [...]

Next Page »