• Stepfamiles and Life Are All About the Playground It's the end of the year. There have been holidays, custody changes, vacations and aggravations. There have also been feelings of extreme joy. Some of us have received notes of love and appreciation from our stepchildren and/or our partners. Some of us feel peace in the knowing that we are making a home base for our children. For some, we still

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    Has the Divorce caused a Raw, Exposed Nerve?All Will Heal Did you ever wonder why the ex-wife just can't get over it?  Maybe, you are a stepmother who has been a part of the family for years, yet you still feel as though the ex-wife hates you.  You just don't understand it.  As you know, we study the art and science of stepfamily management here at The Evil Stepmother Speaks.   This blog

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    Every Stepmother Has That Moment When They Want to Say, "Kiss My Brisket" Do you ever find yourself asking your partner: “What did she/he say?” “No, really, tell me what happened.” “I don’t care what she does.” Next moment. “Tell me what she did.” Do you feel as if you can’t seem to stop yourself? Does it feel as if you are addicted? So, why are we talking and how can we

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    This is a guest post by Author and Stepmother, Holly Robinson Holly Robinson Always Includes Stepfamilies in Her Novels. There was a moment last spring when I poured a cup of tea, carried it into the dining room to read the newspaper, then froze mid-sip when I noticed the date above the headlines. At that very moment, my husband’s ex-wife was enjoying the first day of her vacation in

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    Who is that Stepmother Woman? It is easy to think of the stepmother as that woman your ex partner married.  If the stepmother is just that woman who is in the house, it lessens the pain of the divorce and the consequences that failed relationship has brought.  After all, the worst part of a divorce is the consequences wrought upon the children.  As the children begin their journey between

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    Stepmothers and MothersAre We Like the Mean Girls in High School?We Should Know Better! Have you ever felt as if your stepfamily life mirrored your high school years?  Girls talking about one another?  Never feeling as if you were good enought?  Pretty enough?  Smart enough?  (Sounds like the SNL character Stuart Smalley) Life in high school was stressful. It was like you were

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      Music Can Change the Stepfamily Brain Music can make all the difference. Music is one of the great mood lifters in our arsenal. Not only can it change our attitude, but it can change the attitudes and moods of our family members. Here’s a life changing tip: Every stepmother should have her earphones in 24/7. Keep your ipod full of upbeat music or music that reminds of us happyy

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    Stepmothers Have a Tremendous Effect on Their Stepchildren via The Pygmalion Effect Is that true? Is there nothing that you can do to affect your stepchildren’s life? If you feel powerless, I want to remind you of The Pygmalion Effect. The Pygmalion Effect is a scientifically proven phenomenon whereby the greater the expectation placed upon people the better they perform. Another way to look

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    Is "No" Where We Draw the Line? One of the most annoying things about being a stepmother is that it brings hard subjects up. Often the thing that we don’t want to do, comes up in stepparenting. You know what I mean. Issues like: Drawing the line on issues like self respect, your role in the family and in life, how you want to live and how much you want to compromise in life and whether or not

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    Anne Taintor's Images Encapsulate the Ultimate Passive Aggressive Behavior. Big Smiles. Their Thoughts are In the Words. We love Anne Taintor! Passive aggressiveness runs rampant in our stepfamilies.  I hypothesize that there is a minimum of one family member who exhibits these behaviors.  Are you one of the passive aggressive family members?  Or, are you living with passive aggressive

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