The Stepfamily Handbook: From Dating, to Getting Serious, to Forming a “Blended Family”

By: Karen S. Bonnell MS, Patricia L. Papernow EdD

Narrated by: Laura E. Zucker

Length: 11 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

You’ve met someone! And they have a kiddo (or a few) and you’re wondering what that’s going to mean for your relationship. Or perhaps you’re the one with a kiddo (or a few), and you want to be sure you get this part right for both your dating partner and your child.

The Stepfamily Handbook: From Dating, to Getting Serious, to Forming a “Blended Family” provides essential guidance to parents who are dating and to those who are dating a parent. From those very first dates to including the kids to progressing to that big, important step of living together - this book is for you! Here’s what you’ll learn:

• When and how to introduce children to a dating partner - and some critical do’s and don’ts when you meet the kids. (We’ll offer a few key considerations to set you up for success.)
• How to increase the amount of time spent all together with children - without turning the fun into a stress-mess. (What? That’s tricky? Listen in…you’ll discover why kiddos don’t always jump on a parent’s dating train - and what to do about it.)
• A road map through what we call the “Five Stepfamily Challenges”. These challenges will likely start surfacing long before you’re thinking about living together. They’ll grow in intensity as your relationship gets more serious. (Trust us: You’ll want these practical, proven tips to meet each challenge as they show up.)
• Developmentally specific pointers for ushering children through the struggles of sharing a parent’s attention with another adult (and perhaps other children).
• Research-based information on best practices for parenting, stepparenting, and discipline as time together increases and you find you have really different ideas about what to do when the children act…like children.
• Valuable tips for maintaining a cordial relationship with a permanent player in your relationship - the co-parent (ex-spouse), the children’s other parent. (Like it or not, this important person will have an impact on your dating relationship.)

©2020 Karen S Bonnell (P)2022 Karen S Bonnell

Outstanding

This book is amazing in guiding both co-parents and even new partner on how to best handle this situation for the child.

Great read with lots of insight

This book has it all. From the very beginning stages to the in between, from young children to adult children. It gives viewpoints on each person in the relationship, the parent, the ex, the kids, the new partner and the new partners kids. I really enjoyed this book and felt heard as the partner and the difficulties that come with it.

What About the New Partner?

I was really hoping that this story would also address how the new partner partner fits into the relationship of a blinded family.. While I feel it's most important to make sure the children Are adjusting slowly and positively positively, there there is no strong reference a reference as to the new person dealing with a difficult expouse, and unhealthy difficult dynamic between the ex spouses. Makes the new person feel confused and hurt, especially when the ex makes it clear they come before you.