I AM A STEPMOM!! Can you hear me shouting it from the rooftops? I hope so, because I want the world to know that I’m a stepmom of an AMAZING 4 1/2 year old boy and that I’m PROUD to be a stepmom!

I’ve had a few conversations over the last few days that really made me think about being a stepmom, saying the word stepmom, what people think when they hear the word stepmom, etc. It dawned on me that I was preaching how great it was to be a stepmom, but, was I REALLY practicing what I preach. Granted, I’m the first one to admit that being a stepmom isn’t always a “bed of roses” it DEFINITELY has it’s challenges, which I will share with you from time to time in other blogs. But, was I REALLY believing that I am proud to be a stepmom? Was I “walking the walk” or deep down hoping nobody would ask me a question that would lead me to say that “I’m a stepmom” (which, after hearing those words, they would then picture me in all black with this big wart on my nose and horrible, shrieking laugh)?

I’m the first one to admit that I didn’t grow up saying, “When I grow up I want to be a stepmom?” That was the last thing I ever would have thought that I “wanted to do when I grow up”. Let’s face it, it wasn’t the last thing…it wasn’t even on my radar. BUT, thanks to many fairy tales (Cinderella), movies (Stepmom: even Julia Roberts had a hard time conveying that stepmoms are good not evil), and media there is this underlying, negative stereotype with the word “stepmom”. Where did that come from? Was it Cinderella that provided us with this thinking? Just because her stepmother was evil…ALL stepmothers are evil?

So, in the conversations I was having over the last few days, it caused me to step back and reflect on my last year as a stepmom. Was I really “walking the walk”? Am I PROUD to be a stepmom? Or was I afraid that everyone would think I was this evil witch, all dressed in black with the wart on the nose and the shrieking laugh, when I spoke the word “stepmom”. Am I willing to do my part to overcome the negative stereotype that comes with the word stepmom. It’s amazing how many people still stutter and stammer when the word “stepmom” is in your sentence..”I’m a stepmom” or “I’m the stepmom of…”. There is this silent pause for a few moments. It’s like they are still not sure what to say or how to act. It’s rather bizarre, ESPECIALLY, because of the percentage of blended families that are in this country nowadays. It’s, basically, become a “norm” in this society.

Where I’m going with this is….there is a negative stereotype that seems to follow stepmoms. No matter how nice, how kind, and caring you are…somehow the title “EVIL stepmom” still lingers behind you by society. Here is the BIGGEST question that was posed to me today…why is it just the stepmom who has the negative sterotype? Do you hear people talk about the evil stepdad? Do you see fairy tales, movies, and media focusing on the evil stepdad??

So, I’m curious….where did this negative sterotype start? More importantly, what do I/we do to break through that barrier? God has blessed me with the gift of being a stepmom and all the reponsibility that goes with that. This AMAZING 4 1/2 year old boy, my stepson, is a true gift in my life…and I’m VERY PROUD to be HIS stepmom!! I will shout it from the rooftops!