Tag: ex

I had been divorced for a couple years when my former husband called with a surprise. Thankfully, it wasn’t the type of surprise he delivered the night he sat me at the table and told me he had been unfaithful for more than a decade and was leaving me for someone he met in Las Vegas.

No, this surprise had to do with our 12-year-old son. He said he was taking him to China for a vacation. I got that feeling you get when you walk in on a conversation and everyone is laughing and looking at you like you know what they’re talking about.

None of us like to think about the harsh reality that someone who once loved us is now out to hurt and even punish us, but it’s true. Bitter, disgruntled and dismissed ex’s seek vengeance in any number of ways, including acts of violence, bullying, intimidation, harassment, passive aggressive behavior, silent indifference and using the children as pawns. Let’s look at four of the most common ways ex’s hurt and punish their former partners, why they do it and some positive alternatives to this kind of destructive behavior.

You’ve moved on. You’ve successfully separated from your ex-spouse, figured out the custody schedule, negotiated the divorce, and now find yourself with a whole new world of social possibilities. If you have done your homework, you have figured out what you did wrong in the last relationship and also figured out what kind of partner you want going forward. You are poised to make all sorts of changes to your family, including blending your children and your new spouse’s children into a fresh family unit. The good news is: Most of these changes can be very positive experiences for you and children.

The two happiest days for most couples are the day they get married and the day they welcome their children into the world.  But when time goes on and the fairytale the two of you were once living turns into daily battles, disagreements and just not wanting to be together anymore, the decision to divorce can have a major impact on everyone, especially your children.

No matter the age of the kids, not living under the same roof with both mom and dad anymore is a major life adjustment.

We are all destined for love, so while the statistics for second marriages aren’t appealing it is possible to make a second marriage work much better than the first. Many people, when they have divorced feel they "failed" and fear the thought of "failing" again. In life there is no failure, there are only learning and growing experiences. When you have taken genuine and thoughtful time to heal after a divorce you develop yourself into the whole, loving and confident person you have always desired to be. This gives you the fighting chance to make your second marriage strong and one that will stand the test of time the second time around. Here are four practical solutions on how to make your second marriage work.

Nearly 30% of children in the United States live in blended families. If you are an other mother of teenagers, also known as a stepmother, your job as a parent can feel exhausting and hopeless. Your teenager may compare you to their biological mother, create conflict between you and their father, and say, "You’re not my real mom, you can’t tell me what to do!" Step-parenting a teenager is like asking you to swim laps without arms or put out a fire with just a spoonful of water. Whether your teenager’s biological mother is gracious or completely awful, your spouse is supportive or distant, and your teen is a nightmare or an embarrassment, there is hope!