The visits were not very complicated to organize, the consequences of a visit were the difficult part. His father seemed to be in competition with us, seemed to have no rules and bought expensive gifts that we couldn't afford to give him. This made setting boundaries almost impossible, he was the “fun parent” who had all the joys but none of the real responsibilities of parenting. “When a stepfamily is formed, members have no shared family histories or shared ways of doing things, and they may have very different beliefs. Additionally, a child may feel torn between the parent they live with most (most) of the time and the other parent they visit (e.g., lives somewhere else). Additionally, newly married couples may not have had much time together to adjust to their new relationship” (“Problems with Stepfamilies”). It's very difficult to relate to my stepson when his childhood and mine seem to be polar opposites. Growing up I lived in the same house until I graduated from high school. Instead, before the age of five, he was accustomed to bouncing between the homes of four different family members. I understand that picking up the pieces and building a new family is no easy task. Blended families require an extra dose of patience, forgiveness, love and...