“This is by far the most candid and practical approach to blending a family I’ve ever seen. Reverend Dana hits the nail on the head with virtually every statement. I found myself saying, ‘Finally someone understands.’ The need for blending is becoming more important but is seldom specifically addressed. This is a fantastic book. If you’re blending a family, both of you should read this” (Michael K. Jones, PhD, PT, author of Bridging the Gap between Health Care & Fitness).

In so many families there is a ‘yours’ and a ‘mine’ scenario. Your children. My children. And sometimes ‘ours’. Dawn and Dutch had both had it rough. Their partners had both moved on. Leaving them both thinking that they were pretty useless. In everything including the bedroom duties. Which really was not the case. It was a Sunday afternoon when Dawn had taken her family out to lunch that she met Dutch. Dutch was with his family doing the karaoke. At a little pub come restaurant. Dawn became the star performer but soon had to run off. Soon enough Dutch and Dawn started dating. They weren’t youngsters. But the feelings coursing through their bodies were both new and strange. They hadn’t lived their lives when they should have. They had one tiny little tiff which provoked the little jealous monster. But it soon blew over. Dutch’ family soon became Dawn’s. Dawn’s family admired Dutch. It ended up as ours. A chuckle awaits you! Enjoy!

In Financial Bliss, readers will find out how they can get the most out of their lives together by understanding each other’s financial tendencies, communicating effectively, and charting a course for the future.

LIFE Magazine is the treasured photographic magazine that chronicled the 20th Century. It now lives on at LIFE.com, the largest, most amazing collection of professional photography on the internet. Users can browse, search and view photos of today’s people and events. They have free access to share, print and post images for personal use.

While statistics indicate that nearly half of all first marriages in America today terminate in divorce, more than three-quarters of these divorces also result in remarriage, producing stepfamilies. Although they have become increasingly common, stepfamilies are still poorly understood, by stepfamily and non-stepfamily members alike. This book looks at the internal and external dynamics of this new family form, taking the reader through a series of case studies and examining characteristic pitfalls and opportunities. The author begins by comparing the basic building block of the stepfamily--the remarried couple--to the first-married couple. In successive chapters the structure of the stepfamily is considered in terms of increasing complexity, from the simplest, in which one of the partners has never married before and has no children, to the most complex "yours and ours" stepfamilies, in which there are children from both previous marriages and the present one. The author probes the conflicts that arise between parents and children and among stepsiblings and explores the different strategies that stepfamilies devise for resolving these tensions. In the later chapters, the sociohistorical origins of today's stepfamilies are traced in terms of changing values and new technologies. Professor Beer argues that stepfamilies are proliferating as a result of attitudes and patterns of behavior that, more than ever, encourage divorce and remarriage. He demonstrates on the basis of large-scale evidence that stepfamilies produce children who are just as well adjusted as children brought up by both biological parents, and that they will turn out to be adults who are almost as socially well adapted as those from conventional families. The author concludes that stepfamilies are types of families in their own right, with foreseeable difficulties and rich rewards.

Discusses strategies for improving communication skills, steps for dealing with times of transition, and ways to cope with the daily hurdles found in marriage.

Offers advice on settlement agreements, custody arrangements, mediation, lawyers and legal fees, child and spousal support, visitation, and blended families

An analysis of the sense of mine and yours. Anni Bergman proposes that this grows out of an earlier sense of ours, and that achieving separateness and achieving mutuality coincide. She reflects on both the theoretical and clinical aspects of the development of the sense of self.

There's an old joke that after years of marriage a man complains, "She changed!" and a woman complains "He didn't!" Just as change is a part of life, it's also a part of marriage—a healthy and normal part of it. But just because things have changed doesn't mean you shouldn't recognize yourself or your relationship with your husband. Too many women wake up in their marriages and ask themselves, "Is this it?" After years of sharing domestic duties, raising kids, and balancing careers, many of us can't help but wonder if we're living the lives we intended to have. Whether you have been married for two decades or two months, dating and relationship expert Andrea Syrtash shows how to create a more exciting and more fulfilling relationship with your spouse—and more important, with yourself. After all, you can't expect to find passion in your relationship if you are not passionate about your own life! With simple steps and fun exercises, Cheat On Your Husband (with Your Husband) provides the tools to help you combat boredom in your marriage and renew an easy, intimate connection with your spouse. Using real-life examples of couples who have benefited from her techniques, Syrtash debunks common marriage myths and shows how fun and fulfilling marriage can be.