Sometimes we need to lighten up.

💬 Send us a text! (Yes really!)Okay. I know it’s super easy to take everything about becoming a stepparent and blending your family really seriously. And understandably so — there’s a lot of worrying involved in stepparenting. What if the kids never warm up to you? What if that initial awkwardness never goes away? What if you always feel like an outsider? What if your partner never starts parenting their dang kids? What if the ex never stops interfering in your lives? What if what if what if?To all of this, I propose an alternative solution to constant agonizing that I know will sound like a gross oversimplification but just… hear me out: try to relax. Seriously. Lighten up a little on all that anxiety and doomsday-predicting.There’s no way you’re gonna blend a family without some mistakes and mishaps along the way — but that is normal and okay and doesn’t mean you’re doing any of this wrong or you’ll never feel blended. Something that really helped me was learning more about stepfamily dynamics and how all of this works. So I really encourage you to go read this: ➡️ The 3 phases (& 7 stages) of blending your family 👀I promise, so much of what you’re experiencing is so incredibly common. And if you need any reassurance about that, please come join our Substack community. The posts in our private chatroom are so friggin relatable and validating, and everyone is super helpful and amazing. You don’t have to go through this alone. xo-- 🧡 Need a bigger pep talk? Start here or join us over on Substack! xo This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blendedfamilyfrappe.substack.com