Step Mom Minus The Step!

Have you ever felt your child’s respective birth parent seems to struggle with your role in their life? At times, do you feel you are in competition with one another? To be real, I get the sense that most birth parents are threatened by our ability to be a successful role model in their child’s life.

I mean hey, I get it! I am an educated business professional that knows what success looks like. But that should be a plus, right? Wrong; sometimes I feel that is not enough. We do everything we can for our step child/ren. Take them to school, help them with homework, feed them, clothe them, nurture them; so forth and so on. Yet, what respect and gratitude do we get besides “this is my child, not yours”. But we all know that’s not the case. The child is ours just the same as theirs! We love them and they love us; that’s all that matters!

Raising a child that is not biologically yours can be very difficult. Depending on the dynamics of the situation, this journey can be a great experience or a stressful one. To summarize, I am a stepmom minus the step. My daughter is seven years old and has been in my life since she was two years of age. Our relationship is great; normal mother-daughter stuff. Beauty, Fashion, Education, Social etc.! My relationship with her birth mother is nonexistent. Not by my choice, but that’s just the way things are right now.

My TRUTH is that I expected and wanted something different. I envisioned us being able to co-parent better than any other blended family. Don’t get me wrong, my husband and our child’s birth mother work together in their own way to keep things afloat. But where do I fit in? How can we get like Jada Pickett and Will Smiths ex-wife? Clearly, the answer is time and patience. Are you a stepparent? How is your relationship with your child’s respective birth parent? For those that answered “Good”, what are some small wins you have had?

Share your TRUTHS with me!