Showing titles in Step Parenting & Blended Families

Blending a family isn't simple. But with God's grace, it can be beautiful. Bringing two families together is a journey filled with both joy and challenge. In Blended & Blessed pastor and Bible teacher Inés Franklin draws from the timeless wisdom of Jesus' Beatitudes to offer hope and practical guidance for families navigating the complex path of blending a family. Through Scripture, personal testimony, and research-based tools, Inés reveals how every family—whether blended by marriage, adoption, or circumstance—can move from heartache to healing, from fractured to flourishing.

Out of Bounds is a book for anyone who has lived with anger, estrangement or the deep ache of being wronged. It draws on wisdom from the world's great faiths, philosophies and modern psychology to reveal one timeless truth: Forgiveness is not weakness. It is strength. It is choosing to live unbound–not erasing the past but opening space for a future that feels lighter, freer and yours again. From the prayers whispered in ancient temples to the quiet words spoken in a therapist's office, from sacred scripture to the wisdom of the Stoics, forgiveness has always been humanity's oldest act of...

Eating is an innate skill that has been overcomplicated by marketing schemes and a dieting culture. It’s time to leave the dieting culture behind for the whole family. It starts with the baby’s first bite! When babies show signs of readiness for solid foods, they can eat almost everything the family eats and become healthy, happy eaters in the process. By honoring self-regulation (also an innate skill) and focusing on a whole-food foundation, we can foster healthier children, parents, and families.

Divorce has devastating effects on children. Yet for divorcing parents who carefully consider and manage the intricacies associated with this difficult time, both parents, as seen from the child’s perspective, can remain as loving and supportive as they ever were. Parenting through Divorce concisely lays out the specific emotions and reactions parents need to anticipate from their children while going through separation, divorce, and its after-math.

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?

With a bachelor's and master's degree in education and over 30 years of experience, plus training in trauma sensitivity, author and mother of two, Jennifer Alushan, is ready to give parents and caregivers proven techniques to effectively understand and authentically interact with children so the healing process can begin.

The Happy Stepcouple is a comprehensive, practical self-help book designed to help couples with children from prior relationships thrive despite the complexity of stepfamily life. More than two thirds of stepcouple relationships break up within the first few years of committing to each other. With these terrible odds, every stepcouple needs an arsenal of tools necessary to sustain a loving relationship. The Happy Stepcouple gives them everything they need to navigate complex stepfamily dynamics with confidence and kindness, allowing them to build a happy, fulfilling life.

Leading stepfamily expert Ron Deal offers a revised and expanded edition of his signature resource, which addresses key concerns and practical issues facing every stepfamily.

When I came to town for my sister’s wedding, I never expected to meet a gorgeous silver fox, let alone get pregnant. At first he made my blood boil. I thought I’d never see him again. Until I got to the wedding. Turns out he’s more than just another wedding guest. Jared Fox is my baby sister’s father-in-law. He wants me, and I’m powerless to resist him. His gaze on me triggers butterflies in my stomach. Despite our age difference, the heat between us is wild and delicious. His touch on my skin leaves a trail of fireworks that keeps burning hotter and hotter. When he whispers in my...

Open adoption isn't just something parents do when they exchange photos, send emails, share a visit. It's a lifestyle that may feel intrusive at times, be difficult or inconvenient at other times. Tensions can arise even in the best of circumstances. But knowing how to handle these situations and how to continue to make arrangements work for the child involved is paramount. This book offers listeners the tools and the insight to do just that.

A stepmother constantly sees to others' needs - those of her spouse, her kids, his kids, their kids. She also has to work so hard to maintain her marriage or deal with the emotional turmoil that can follow divorce and marrying again, that she may neglect her own needs. It's no wonder, then, that stepmothers often ask: Who's taking care of me? This is where Sue Patton Thoele steps in, offering practical advice and emotional support in a new edition of her book, The Courage to Be a Stepmom.

The Stepparent Trap approach is based on reality and empathy. By embracing a new way to think about the family dynamics, you can begin to build real relationships with your stepchildren based on understanding, not just expectations.

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. 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. 

George Glass, MD, a board-certified psychiatrist, has designed an audiobook to help parents understand the challenges of beginning new lives with blended families, and to help their children make the necessary adjustments. He explains how to approach unavoidable dilemmas when they occur and offers invaluable lessons about the link between divorce and issues of self-esteem, depression, substance abuse, and relationship failures that often result from the breakup of a family.

When unexpected grief brings two families together, how do they start their journey to healing? Join Michael and Gina Spehn--bestselling authors and founders of the New Day Foundation--as they tell their story of resilience, remembrance, and reliance on their shared faith. Matt Kell and Cathy...

If you are considering remarriage and want to do everything you can to ensure a happy and fulfilling union, turn to Ron Deal and the Smart Stepfamily series. This is the ideal book for engaged or pre-engaged couples who have at least one child from a previous relationship, offering premarital counsel about how to prepare to blend family relationships, parenting, finances, rituals, and daily routines for your new life together.

What makes stepmothering so hard? And why are we, as people and a culture, so hard on stepmothers? How can we make it easier? Stepmonster is a truly unique and groundbreaking book for women with stepchildren, men with kids who repartner, adult stepchildren, and anyone who cares about them. It is a comprehensive, cross-cultural, research-based reconsideration of stepfamily dynamics - from the perspective of the stepmother.

Read by the author with audiobook exclusive exercises to help lighten the mental load in categories such as decision-making, household chores, and parenting/emotional labor. A guilt-free guide that strips away the myths you've believed about motherhood and offers you a new way to think--about...

A wise and inspiring guide to creating a happy and healthy blended family by Mashonda Tifrere with contributions from her co-parents--Swizz Beatz and his wife, Grammy-Award winning singer and songwriter Alicia Keys. In January 2010, founder of ArtLeadHer Mashonda Tifrere and music producer Swizz...

Building the Bonds of Attachment is the third edition of a critically acclaimed book for social workers, therapists, and parents who strive to assist children with reactive attachment disorder. This work is a composite case study of the developmental course of one child following years of abuse and neglect.