My son keeps asking me when I'm going to have another baby. He wants a sibling and he's not alone. I have baby cravings all the time, especially after spending time with my sister's new baby - or looking at the pictures of him that are on my fridge or kitchen table. Basically, several times a day! Bonus Families is a website and a wonderful term for the step-families of my generation. I'd like to inherit a bonus family someday, but I'm not in any hurry. I'm still enjoying the time I have... Read Full Story
So you decide that you can't live without each other and want to entertain the combination of two families...living in a blended family...what do you do? The wedding itself can be quite the headache. Thinking about whether or not to subject the family to yet another union between you and another future spouse is the least of your worries. The real questions are do you elope or do you have a formal wedding ceremony. In our case, we chose to have a formal wedding ceremony. MDT is Catholic and... Read Full Story
Well, sometimes you wish your kids would eventually move out and sometimes you are sad. I have to say that although there have been times when I wished the Rap Master was not living here, now is not one. About two weeks ago, we helped him move into a house with some of his new friends. There are six people in this house near downtown. It is in a historic area and the house is pretty interesting. It is old and has some bad points but all in all, it is not bad for his first place. The room he... Read Full Story
I thought it might be important to mention the other parties in this relationship. If you are in a blended family, you know exactly what I mean. Even though you might have divorced your former spouse, they still are always, somehow, someway in the picture. Let me introduce you to LEW and DEX. LEW is my ex-wife. I have a little explaining to do regarding her nickname here. LEW stands for Lousy Ex Wife. Now I must say, she is not a bad mom or a lousy woman. This nickname came about when voice... Read Full Story
When my first marriage ended, there was a pet involved in the process as well. We had a dog that slept in our bed with us. I know that people love their pets, sometimes as much as kids, but sharing the bed with a dog is...well...kind of gross. Our dog would wake up at night and lick his paws. Imagine waking up and rolling over into a wetspot on the bed. With or without dogs, I am sure each of you has once done this (I won't get into the specifics of non-dog wetspots but you know what I mean... Read Full Story
I was surprised today with a knock on our front door. I answered the door to find a friend's wife from down the street. She asked if I could help her get her Honda Pilot started as she had left a light on overnight and it would not start. When I arrived in their garage she told me her husband was not at home and that is why she needed my help. She also told me that they were in the process of getting a divorce. I was totally shocked as they seemed like the perfect couple. They are both... Read Full Story
The idealist in me felt like when we got married the children would naturally feel good about this decision. Well...guess what? That is the farthest from reality. Instead, marriage only heightens the kid's fears and discomfort. Was that really a surprise? It should not be! Any parent with physical custody of children has to realize that before remarriage, kids enjoy the unimpeded focus on them. They like being the center of the universe. Throw in another authority figure and maybe even... Read Full Story
It is hard to run a household with six people in it...especially when half of those in the house belonged to their own set of rituals including house cleaning. When we first started living together as a blended family, there were several things that came to the forefront rather quickly. One of the more important ones was who will be doing what around the house to ensure a safe and happy living environment. Just as with any household blended or not, children rarely do things without first... Read Full Story
Well, the police finally arrived and knocked at the door. I had him come into the house and he began to explain the series of events that transpired while we were off in another state. It seems as though the neighbors called the police the Saturday morning (1a-2a) before we got home to complain about the noise coming from the house. When the police arrived, they saw a steady stream of people fleeing from the lower portion of the house through our basement windows. They were able to catch one... Read Full Story
I thought it might be a good idea to let you know a little about each of us. I will start with MDT. As I mentioned earlier, she is a year older than me. She was born in this part of the world and was one of seven children in a Catholic family. She was smack dab in the middle of this clan. She is what I would classify as an independent woman. She even said that she did not need a man in her life to be successful. In fact, she even states she was "only playing" (ummm...that means flirting... Read Full Story
