melissa@blendedfamilypodcast.com

www.blendedfamilypodcast.com

Forgiveness is something that is necessary in all families. Blended families will not be as successful if we cannot learn how forgive others. It is also extremely important to teach our children how to do this. These nine steps were taken from www.learningtoforgive.com

1. Know exactly how you feel about what happened and be able to articulate what about the situation is not OK. Then, tell a trusted couple of people about your experience.

2. Make a commitment to yourself to do what you have to do to feel better. Forgiveness is for you and not for anyone else.

3. Forgiveness does not necessarily mean reconciliation with the person that hurt you, or condoning of their action. What you are after is to find peace. Forgiveness can be defined as the “peace and understanding that come from blaming that which has hurt you less, taking the life experience less personally, and changing your grievance story.”

4. Get the right perspective on what is happening. Recognize that your primary distress is coming from the hurt feelings, thoughts and physical upset you are suffering now, not what offended you or hurt you two minutes – or ten years – ago. Forgiveness helps to heal those hurt feelings.

5. At the moment you feel upset practice a simple stress management technique to soothe your body’s flight or fight response.

6. Give up expecting things from other people, or your life, that they do not choose to give you. Recognize the “unenforceable rules” you have for your health or how you or other people must behave. Remind yourself that you can hope for health, love, peace and prosperity and work hard to get them.

7. Put your energy into looking for another way to get your positive goals met than through the experience that has hurt you. Instead of mentally replaying your hurt seek out new ways to get what you want.

8. Remember that a life well lived is your best revenge. Instead of focusing on your wounded feelings, and thereby giving the person who caused you pain power over you, learn to look for the love, beauty and kindness around you. Forgiveness is about personal power.

9. Amend your grievance story to remind you of the heroic choice to forgive.

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Other links

www.learningtoforgive.com

www.blendedfamilypodcast.com/article for the HuffPost article

melissa@blendedfamilypodcast.com

www.blendedfamilypodcast.com

Don’t miss this awesome Father’s Day Special, with special guest, Justin Worsham. Justin has a thriving career as a comedian, and is now cultivating a radio career. His podcast, called The Dad Podcast, is rising to the top of the charts! In this interview we discuss

• Justin’s role as a stay at home, working parent

• His relationship with his own dad

• Incorporating humor into parenting

• The Dad Podcast

• Some parenting struggles

• Some personal information about Justin

Here at the the Blended Family Podcast, we want to wish all of the dad’s out there a very special Father’s Day. Please share this episode with the special father’s in your life!

Here’s how you can connect with Justin Worsham!

Website

Podcast

Twitter

To connect with me!

Join the Private Facebook Group

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Send questions or feedback to melissa@blendedfamilypodcast.com

Send me a voicemail at Speakpipe

Visit the website at www.blendedfamilypodcast.com

melissa@blendedfamilypodcast.com

www.blendedfamilypodcast.com

Summer is here, school is out! What are you going to do with your blended family? It can be hard to coordinate schedules over the summer and also keep them busy. What can you do so you don’t hear the constant “I’m bored?” I’ll give you just a few tips in this short episode, as I’m getting ready to take a small trip before the chaos of summer arrives!

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Send questions or feedback to melissa@blendedfamilypodcast.com

Send me a voicemail at Speakpipe

Visit the website at www.blendedfamilypodcast.com

melissa@blendedfamilypodcast.com

www.blendedfamilypodcast.com

There are many roles we play in our blended families, and sometimes we can feel unappreciated for all that we do. There are five main categories or roles that we feel unappreciated in.

1. Stepparent

2. Parent

3. Partner

4. Child

5. New partner (unappreciated by partner’s ex)

Proper communication can help, by expressing to your family what your needs are. Most of us have these feelings at one point or another.

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Send questions or feedback to melissa@blendedfamilypodcast.com

Send me a voicemail at Speakpipe

Visit the website at www.blendedfamilypodcast.com

melissa@blendedfamilypodcast.com

www.blendedfamilypodcast.com

It is very common as parents to compare our own children to other children. This comparison hinders us from truly seeing the positive qualities in a child. We need to accept, love, and embrace our kids for who they are, positive and negative. Blended families can struggle with this, as suddenly there are other kids in the home, and often we cannot help but to compare our biological children to our stepchildren. It is our human nature to do this, but it’s important to try not to for the sake of your child, and for your own sanity. You can make a conscious effort to stop comparing, love your children for who they are, and focus on their positive qualities.

Join the Private Facebook Group

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Send questions or feedback to melissa@blendedfamilypodcast.com

Send me a voicemail at Speakpipe

Visit the website at www.blendedfamilypodcast.com