Today I had the pleasure of spending the afternoon with some great women. And not just any women – stepmoms! As a stepmom myself, it’s a great, but rare, occasion when I’m surrounded by others who can relate to my situation.

I know very few people who are in the same boat, which makes me feel like I’m going it alone. As much as my hubby tries to be a good sounding board, he’s on a different ship altogether. He chose to be married before. I didn’t. He chose to have a baby with someone else. I didn’t. He made his bed, and now I have to lie in it.

Don’t get me wrong, I knew what I was getting myself into when I started dating him (for the most part), but despite knowing the facts, going through the motions was an entirely different ballgame.

So today, it was nice to share my stories, and hear from other supermoms, er, stepmoms, which reinforced that it’s not just me.

What I learned today:

-       Being a stepparent is challenging

-       Being a stepparent requires a lot of compromises

-       Being a stepparent can be very rewarding

-       Being a stepparent can test your patience

-       Being a stepparent is a learning process

What I also learned today:

-       Being a parent is all of the above

So while step-parenthood comes with its fair share of challenges, so does any form of parenthood. The main difference is that stepparents have outside factors that play into their parenting, and that, as every stepparent can agree, is the biggest challenge to face.

That’s why days like today are so nice. It was nice to meet some new, like-minded people. And nice to know that I’m not alone.