Daily Encouragement for the Smart Stepfamily

Becoming and being a step parent is HARD! These daily words of encouragement are just amazing! My fiancé loves waking up to read the next one. I highly recommend this book and others from this author! We are not alone! Keep trudging through the mud it’s worth it I promise!!

Great book with a daily dose of encouragement, instruction and practical help for the blended family parents. Giving copies as gifts to friends.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from the publisher in return for my honest opinion. All thoughts and opinions are my own. For more information please see my Terms of Use and Disclosure Policy. Thank you.Are you part of a blended family? A stepfamily? I am the proud mom to a stepson and two biological children, so reading Daily Encouragement for the Smart Stepfamily by Ron L. Deal with Dianne Neal Matthews was a pleasure. This book is part of the Smart Stepfamily Series from Bethany House and provides a dose of "wisdom and inspiration for blended families" for each day of the year.In the Introduction, readers are given the advice to "Start where you are. Look up today's date and start reading." That is just what I did the day the book arrived. I do not feel starting approximately 1/3 of the way in the book was a hindrance. Due to the well-written nature of the book, one can pick it up and start on the date they purchased it. Deal and Matthews also suggest in the introduction that couples read each day's encouragement together, if possible, and share some of the entries with their children.Each day's Daily Encouragement takes only about one minute to read and includes a prayer. This is perfect for busy families who might feel themselves being pulled in multiple directions by their many responsibilities.I think one of my favorite doses of encouragement is July 6 – "Unlearn and Learn." It applies to spouses and children – "so stop assuming and start listening." We all have moments where we need to rethink what we know and relearn how to be a good spouse and parent. The other piece of advice I am taking away from my first reading of the book is to "choose to be in the present moment." This is great advice for any parent.Our family might not fit the typical stepfamily description in that we are not co-parenting with anyone because my stepson's mother is deceased. At first, I thought that maybe Daily Encouragement for the Smart Stepfamily might not speak to me as a stepmom due to our family circumstances but this was not the case. In fact, I feel it will provide useful information for not just stepparents but also parents of any stripe.I recommend Daily Encouragement for the Smart Stepfamily for stepfamilies of all types – those who are new to the world of stepfamilies and those who have been 'blended' for years. With the encouragement, words, advice, and prayers, it is something that parents can read year after year.

Parenting in and of itself can be quite difficult. From the moment a parent finds out they are going to have a baby (are we getting the right prenatal care?) to the trying teen years (how do I get my child to stop lying?) and forevermore, there’s no doubt that being a parent is a huge responsibility. And that’s with your own flesh and blood children. Throw in being a step-parent and the complications rise even more. Now you have a child that is not fully your flesh and blood, but is still the flesh and blood child of your spouse, who, whether their other parent is living or passed on, may resent you for whatever reason which causes some tension on your end and creates a total head butting episode (not that I’m speaking from experience at all…). There are some step-parents that have a great relationship with their step-children and if you are one of them, that is great, but for the most part, movies and society portray the step-parent as a wicked and evil villain who is out to become the fairest one of them all. With all the negative portrayals out there, step-parents could use a little encouragement and a pat on the back from time to time to let them know that their efforts are not in vain, and I think that is what Ron L. Deal with Denise Neal Matthews try to do in their book Daily Encouragement for the Smart Stepfamily.This book is set up like a devotion in that each day is a new topic, or an expansion on the topic from the day before. While it is Biblically based, instead of being a Bible devotion where you read a chapter or a verse and have a little meditation on that, this is a piece of encouragement a day for 365 Days. I haven’t read through the whole book yet because I am trying to just read a page a day, but so far, I am enjoying the little snippets and they are challenging me to think outside the box. Some are direct principles from the Bible (how the fruits of the spirit can apply to step-families was a segment) and some are just snippets that let the step-family know, “hey, you’re really not alone in this”. Some days are even designed to be shared as a whole family to work on creating more unity/discussion amongst the family members. Each day is concluded with a short prayer to start your prayers for the night based on that day’s discussion.So far, overall I am glad I got this book. At first I wasn’t too sure because I don’t always want to readily admit my shortcomings in my family, but this book isn’t about pointing out what you do wrong at all. This book is like a fellow runner coming up alongside you in a race when you are on that last leg and about to collapse because you’re not sure you can run another foot and cheering you on letting you know that you can get through this and this too shall pass and you are doing well. Keep up the good work.If you’re a step-parent, I encourage you to pick up this little book of encouragement written just for you.I received this book free courtesy of Bethany House Publisher’s Blogger Review Program in exchange for an honest review.