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The internet is going a bit crazy over this viral picture that has swept the hearts of people around the world.  The picture speaks for itself to show how these parents have truly come together to support their daughter and step daughter. The picture was first shared on Facebook of Emilee's 4-year old step daughter Maelyn during her soccer game which was held in Columbus, Georgia.  The picture includes Maelyn's largest fan base, her parents and step parents.  The parents were kneeling down wearing blue shirts with Maelyn's jersey number 37, along with their titles of Mommy, Daddy, Step Mom and Step Dad. When Emilee posted the picture she was hoping to share it with her friends and family but in less than one week the picture had over 35,000 reactions and 82,000 shares on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.   As the world sits back and admires the blended family goals, Emilee says this is their "normal life." The four of them  Carla (Mother) Rick (Father) Carl

Co Parenting Vs Parallel Parenting Most of us understand the term co parenting but the term parallel parenting seems to be less often used and although there are many parents who parallel parent, they might be unaware there is now a name for it.  Let's dive into the differences between co parenting verse parallel parenting and find out which parenting type you are.  Trust me, it is very simple and you will know right away which type of situation you are in.  This article is short and to the point! Co parenting:  The basis of a co parenting situation is essentially two parents who have conversations directly with one another in order to figure out schedules and possibly discuss things that might be happening in each household.  As a co parent you might not have a great relationship with the other parent but you at least have enough of a relationship to be able to communicate with one another about the children.  Co parenting is the best ideal situation for the children becau

Co parenting can be a daunting task and while every situation is different there are still ways to make a better co parent and hopefully help ease your day to day tension with your ex spouse!  Tip #1  Learn to be present for your children no matter what.  When you are constantly focused on arguing and speaking negatively about the other parent (which you should never do in front of your child) you are actually not truly present for your children.  Spend your time and attention focusing on them, your love for them and everything that has to do with them.  You will find a lot more peace prioritizing your time when you are with them if you can keep the focus on what is important.   Tip #2 Learn to accept what you can not control.  You will drive yourself absolutely nuts if you can not accept what IS reality.  If your ex partner has a new spouse, you can not control that situation, therefore you should take the necessary steps possible to learn to accept them.  (Read How to beco

Enjoy reading 10 uplifting co parenting quotes that will brighten your day!  1. "The best security blanket a child can have is parents who respect each other." -Jane Blaustone 2. "Who cares if another woman or man loves your child, plays with your child, or builds a healthy relationship with your child- either way your child IS benefiting.  Did you read that? 'Your' child is benefiting.  That is whats important."  -Jessica James.  3. "The best obligation as a parent is to not bring chaos into your children's lives." -Unknown.  4. "Your children are watching you very, very closely.  Showing your children that you can respect each other and resolve conflict respectfully will give them a good foundation for the conflict that arises in their own lives.  Do your best to remain relaxed and focused, use calm tone of voice and a non concerned facial expression when tension rises." -Unknown  5. "This is probably one of the mo

If you are in a co parenting agreement than I am sure you can relate to missing your children while they are with the other parent.  This is one of the hard hurdles we must over come when separated from your children's other parent.   Adjusting to a new life can sometimes be hard when you have been with your babies from the moment they were born.  You are not alone, in fact, there are many people who suffer from this situation, but there are positive ways to over coming this emotional burden are bring you a little peace.  While your child is away, utilize your time by spending it with more people.  Plan ahead of time for instance, every other Thursday after work have dinner with your mom and dad.  Invite a friend to hike with you every Friday or Saturday.  There are many things you can do to keep yourself surrounded by people.  A few more ideas might include, getting drinks with friends during happy hour, going on a day trip with your brother or sister or join local groups

Let's face it, parenting is hard but if you are the new spouse and are spending time with their children you might get cold feet in the long run.  This is fairly typical and any single parent can relate to dating someone, but when the going gets tough they seem to bail out.  Hopefully this is not happening to you and your relationship can blossom into the best blended family possible but lets dive into the 5 signs they might be running for the hills.   These are simply just "signs" and are not concrete facts and we understand each relationship is different.  1. You guys begin to argue quite often and you have only been in a relationship for one year or less.  Typically in the duration of this dating window most couples do not have enough built up to argue on a consistent basis.  Normally this time is still in the honeymoon phase and although you might argue, you need to look for signs for continuous arguments, especially stemming from your new partner.  When peop

The "law of attraction" phrase has become increasingly popular over the past ten years and more people understand exactly what it is, but most of us are not implementing this technique to raise our energy to better, happier relationships.   The law of attraction states that what we put our thoughts or focus upon, we receive into our life.  Therefore, if we focus upon not having a good relationship with your children we are in the mind set of constantly not having good relationships.  It is not until you shift your focus to better thoughts such as, "I always make things work." "I always have the best patience with my children."  By replacing your bad thought with better ones you not only attract a better feeling emotion but you spark a fire inside of you to truly make things work out for you.   In order for the law of attraction to give you continuous success you must view it as a tipping scale and your good thoughts (in total) must out weigh the bad t

Sadly, many couples find themselves at this crossroads of separation and finding the right words in order to let the children know can be tough.  Let's face it, it can be embarrassing and even make you feel ashamed to let your children know you and your spouse were not able to make it work and have decided to split. Before you get started breaking the news to your children you need to sit down with your soon to be ex spouse and discuss in detail an "exit" plan.  By this I mean you need to figure out who is going to stay in the house, who is going to go?  Perhaps both of you decide to sell the house and find new places?  You need to figure out a temporary schedule for which days the children will be with which parent.  If you go into the conversation blindly you will find you child or children are going to be more stressed and have an emotionally harder time processing the information. Thing you might expect to hear once you let them know the news are: "What does

What is the best way possible to sort your bills and any finances with your ex spouse? Well, this is going to be no shock here but before you can sort anything you must communicate.  I know, some people end relationships for this very reason but you are just as much liable for your extra finances together so you need to act like an adult and get it done.  This is just a one or two time sit down and then you can move on with your life.   I'm going to start off with the simple things first before diving into the mortgage and credit cards Tid bit expenses you will have to discuss with your ex.  You will never have everything 50/50 especially when it comes to paying for the child.  Small things like going to the doctor or the dentist-  two options, either set up a savings account for that child and have $10 go into that account each paycheck and use that money to pay for medical expenses when the child is with you (trust me it helps and seems to happen at the worst times.) You

If you are reading this than chances are you are a step parent yourself or know someone who is one.  Speaking through my own experience I understand being a step parent can have its fair share of challenges but I was able to push through and I would like to express what I have learned along the way in order to possibly help others.   What I feel makes a great step parent is someone who is actively involved in their step children's hobbies and activities.  I know a couple of step parents who just do the bare minimum because they feel they "have to."  Which I do understand as well, not everyone can jump into a step parent role and love the children unconditionally.  Make the attempt to show up to every soccer or basketball game, go to their school events and show them you are going to support them no matter what.  I understand sometimes going to these events you might run into the other biological parent but just stay strong, be respectful and keep your eye on the prize

If you are a new step parent or the new girlfriend or boyfriend than you might find yourself slightly overwhelmed with the amount of stress this type of situation may hold, but don't worry because these tips are tricks will help you get over the hurdle and keep your mind at ease. Let's not kid ourselves, if were going to become friends with the baby mama, then hold on to your booty because it's going to be a wild ride.  If you can get over these hurdles trust me it will be worth it.  I consider my husband ex a very dear friend of mine now!  Rule #1 Don't get involved *at first* when you are the new person!  Firstly, you will not be taken seriously if you jump into the situation and speak to the biological mother or father of the children as if you fully know the situation.  At this point, you most likely only know one side which is your new partners side.  Now, you might have a dark clouded vision of the other biological parent because it's unlikely your new par

Through my experience as a step mother I feel I was able to master the relationship's with the kids.  I would like to dive into my experiences and hope it helps others!  Rule #1 Don't try to be mom or dad.  Although you might be confused on what I mean if you are actually the step parent but despite the situation the child is going to have two places in his heart already accounted for which is 'mom' and 'dad' therefore this role is already taken.  If the child is old enough to understand you can sit down with the child and tell them you are not "here" to replace mom or dad but simply add one extra person in their life that will be there for them.  By doing this, you automatically ease the threat of taking one of those accounted places and the child will feel more at ease knowing you are not a replacement person.  If the child is not old enough to understand than you are in a good place to show with your action that you are here to simply care, love

First off, I am not a family therapist, nor am I shaming that line of work because they have helped many people, families and children cope with new changes.  However,  I am here to tell my story from my perspective living in the world of a blended family in order to help someone else with this situation.  *Disclaimer- this article is not to insult anyone or pour salt on the wound if you are guilty of doing any of these rules.  We are all adults here, so lets get real and be real and shift perspective in order to have the best co parenting and blended family life.* Let's dive into the STORY in order to start somewhere! Long story short, I met my husband in 2008 and he was recently recovering from a nine year relationship and had two children with his ex.  Growing up I did not imagine myself finding someone who already had a family, I always imagined my life would be with someone who "started" a family.  Little did I know, this would be the most amazing journey I have