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Blended Family Breakthrough
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Bonding | Kid’s Perspectives | Marriage/Partnership | Parenting/Discipline | Co-Parenting
063. 5 Strategies to Help You Get United — Even When You Disagree
Discover 5 powerful strategies that will help you get on the same page as you lead your family forward — together! These strategies will reduce the negative impact of parent-child allegiances and keep the two of you connected, even when you don't agree.
062. How to Partner Well as a Stepparent — Even if You Feel Stuck on the Outside (Part 2)
…join us for the second half of the conversation all about the "easy wrong turns" that stepparents often make when they're frustrated with feeling stuck on the outside of a parent-child allegiance.
061. How to Partner Well as a Stepparent — Even if You Feel Stuck on the Outside (Part 1)
Tune into the first half of our conversation about the "easy wrong turns" that stepparents often make when they're frustrated with feeling stuck on the outside of a parent-child allegiance. We'll share the rest of the conversation in the next episode.
060. Why are you stuck in a Parent-Child Allegiance? (Part 2)
…join us for the second half of our conversation about the challenges bio-parents often face when they're stuck in a parent-child allegiance.
059. Why are you stuck in a Parent-Child Allegiance? (Part 1)
Listen in on the first half of our conversation about the challenges bio-parents often face when they're stuck in a parent-child allegiance. We'll share the rest of the conversation in the next episode.
053. Overcoming Discouragement (Part 3)
In this episode, you'll discover a critical strategy for overcoming discouragement. In a conversation with our clients Dan & Renee, you'll hear their hopeful and inspiring story — and learn how they discovered positive, new approaches to their challenging dynamics that moved them beyond discouragement.
052. Overcoming Discouragement (Part 2)
In this episode, you'll discover a powerful strategy for overcoming discouragement when you listen in to the conversation with our clients Jake and Whitney. You'll laugh, you'll cry and you'll relate to their story of struggle. Plus, you'll discover ways that you can thrive by following their examples!
051. Overcoming Discouragement (Part 1)
It's common for blended family couples to get stuck in discouragement. Especially when they experience painful setbacks and feel like they've failed. In this week's episode, we'll share how we broke free from discouragement and learned to turn setbacks into opportunities for growth.
050. How to Openly Communicate What You Really Want
In this week's episode we'll uncover the four common styles of communication and help you develop the skill of clear, honest and more assertive communication so you can speak your truth, be heard and connect more with your spouse.
049. Should your highest priority be your marriage — or your kids?
In this week's episode, we'll uncover the realities around why 'priority issues' are so tough for blended families and share how we learned to work as a united team to overcome these challenges in our home.
046. How to Focus When Your Stepkids Are Ruining Your Marriage
It's tough for stepparents to admit that sometimes they really do feel like their step-kids are ruining their marriage. Check out this episode to discover what you can do to build your romance and safeguard your marriage — even if the kids seem to have all the power.
035. Are you controlling conflict or is it controlling you?
Don't let conflict steal your connection. Find out how you can actually handle conflict in a way that leads you to more connection and intimacy in your marriage — and in your blended family!
027. How to Set Clear Boundaries and Safeguard Relationships
Clear and healthy boundaries allow for stronger bonds and more satisfying relationships. Check out this episode to find out the best way to set these boundaries in your blended family.
024. What if You Could Relieve the Trapped Teammate Pressure? (Part 4 - Bonus!)
In this episode, we’re talking about how to get unstuck when you’re feeling Trapped between your spouse and your kids. We call that being a Trapped Teammate and just about every parent in a blended family experiences this to some level. We’re sharing a couple of mindset shifts, some “stories” to avoid, and even a simple 5-step process to help relieve the pressure of feeling trapped.
023. How to Move From Feeling Stranded to Being Connected (Part 3 of 3)
I (Mike) often felt stuck on the outside as a step-parent. Kim and Annika had their little inside routines and jokes that I couldn’t seem to connect with. What I really wanted was to instantly feel included…but blended family life just doesn’t work that way. When I was feeling like a Stranded Stranger, what I was really wanting was for our family to “blend”. But one stepfamily expert says that “compartmentalizing” is a better approach…
022. 1 Simple — and Romantic — Way to Combat Being Stranded or Trapped (Part 2 of 3)
If you want to show up better in the moments when one or both of you is feeling Trapped or Stranded — then you’ve got to start from a place of already being connected, rather than trying to “connect” in the moment of stress…
021. What is the Stranded Stranger & Trapped Teammate Experience? (Part 1 of 3)
Step Parents, have you ever felt left out? Has it ever felt like there's a big relational chasm that you just can't seem to cross — like you're Stranded?
Bio-Parents, have you ever felt stuck between your spouse and your kids? Do you feel pulled back and forth trying to please both, but not seeming to please anyone — like you're Trapped?
Sooner or later, every step-couple experiences these feelings of being Trapped or Stranded. For some, the feelings are paralyzing and for others, they're just annoying…
016. 5 Proven Fundamentals to Something New in Your Blended Family
What do you want for your family over the next year? If you're like most couples in a blended family, you might feel overwhelmed and uncertain about how to move forward. 1 year from now, you probably don't want everyone experiencing the same challenges they are now. You want something new…something better. But how do you make that happen? That's where we come in. Check out this week's episode to discover your starting point to something new for your family this year!
013. How to Parent as a Team in Your Blended Family
How does a blended family couple come together around discipline? That's a question we recently received — and that's what we're tackling in this podcast episode. We'll discuss the first things we should focus on as bio-parent and step-parent to become a great parenting team. Check it out…
012. 4 Meaningful Mindsets for Budgeting Your Happy Holiday
Are we the only ones who want to avoid budgeting for the holidays?! Can't we just spend whatever we want to bring a little happiness to our blended family this one time per year? We wish that were the case. The truth is budgeting in a blended family is more about relationships and emotions than it is about money. As you head into the holidays this year, consider adopting these 4 mindsets…they may just keep you connected as a couple and as a family!