Happy Mother's Day to all you moms and stepmoms (including dog and cat and other pet moms) out there! 

I don't have (human) kids, but I am celebrating that this is my second year heading into Mother's Day NOT seeing the extreme forced Mommy Worship that takes place annually on social media by my skids--the over-the-top wuv and kisses and hugs and gushing these two adult skids have done for years. It has always been so over-the-top that it comes off as dictated and disingenuine.  

Thoughts?

I would not question for one bit if I was invited or DW was invited to a family event and the invitation did not specifically name the partner, say "Mr & Mrs", or say "+1".

We would happily show up and participate and let the chips fall where anyone who had a problem with it chose to drop their chips.

Family events (Weddings, Funerals, Graduations,Birthdays, Quinceaneras, Christinings, etc...). If we had the more contentious model of blended family marriage where 

I've been waiting for the other shoe to drop since the day SD63 got referrals for her tremors and leaking, bleeding breast implants.  That was also the day she told me her car needed $800 in repairs to pass inspection and laid down all her other financial, medical and relationship problems.  In the meantime, I learned she has 2 upcoming court appearances for speeding, lapsed plates and no car insurance.  She was scheduled to be here today to pay her "rent' and I dreaded it 

Hey good morning bonus parents! Happy early Mother s Day Anybody else with younger step kids feel like our Mother's Day has been stripped away from us? It feels like SK's get centerstage 24/7 and although my bio boys are older now, I still feel like my mom title was taken away and I was handed a "step mom" title. This feeling sucks and I have felt like this for a while even more so closer to Mother's Day, perhaps it's because my sks do seek so much attention. Any other ladies feel this way? 

Hi, everyone! I am new here. I am here mostly to vent. I have been in a relationship with my DH for 8 years, but we've only been married for just over 2 years. My stepson (now 16) was 8 years old when DH and I got together. At the time, DH had been separated from BM for 3 years, but their divorce wasn't final until the summer after we got together, 2017. Legally, DH has custody every week, Friday and Saturday night. Unofficially, we've had SS16 from Thursday-Sunday since 2018.

This weekend was OSS's BD. He's early 30's.  It was inconvenient for us to go to the lake (1/2 hr. from where OSS lives) but we went to take him to dinner to celebrate his bday. Obviously, DH paid for dinner for all 7 of us--OSS, SDIL, 2 SGDs, DS 17, DH, & me. It went fine. As usual, all discussion was around OSS's life, no questions about ours.

I've been SUPER busy so have not been here much at all...work has been awful (great job, great people, bad government decisions/rules), but for now I still have a job...we'll see how that is in the next 6 - 12 months.

I posted about SD63's recent Dr appt where she bombarded me with her health issues (tremors, leaking, infected breast implants, heart issues, knee requiring replacement along with the Barrett's esophagus, ulcer and anemia), car problems ("tell Dad it will cost $800 to get it to pass inspection") and  problems with her one remaining kid who still speaks to her.  Following that day, he and I both called several days to follow up but she never answered or returned calls.  I was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

From my last posts, you can see the history. One of her last texts to me also stated, "Thank you for showing me what’s not for me A person who is for me will not sit up there and screenshot old messages between me and my ex and try to throw that shit up in every argument They will not make me choose between them and my son They will embrace that I’m a single mom They will not get overwhelmed for the littlest things We will be able to communicate healthy and not always have to fight  !

Thank you for all the good advice and sharing similar scenarios to mine. Google and Reddit has helped me open my eyes to other healthy experiences of blended families and I realized mine would never be one of them.