Blended Family Breakthrough
We're Mike and Kim Anderson, and we believe in a world where blended families experience a future full of hope, connection, and peace. That's why we focus on helping couples in stepfamilies move from a place of confusion and conflict to a life of confidence and connection. Thanks for joining us to discover how you can live the blended family life you really want!
Not sure where to start? Learn more at https://www.blendedfamilybreakthrough.com
Episodes
370 episodes
Simple Step: The Super Strength of Consideration
ResourcesSimple Step: Managing Loyalties & Priorities in Your HomeEpisode 167.
244. More Than the Struggle: 4 Super Strengths that Emerge in Blended Family Life
It’s easy to look at the unfinished parts of your blended family and wonder if something is wrong.Maybe relationships haven’t developed as quickly as you hoped. Your stepchild still keeps their distance. A biological parent feels caught ...
Simple Step: Why Stepparents Need a Strong Sense of Identity
Suggest a Topic or Ask a Question Would you like us to discuss something specific or answer your question on the show? Let us know!We've made it easy. Just click here:
243. How Stepparents Can Thrive by Protecting Their Heart, While Still Showing Up [with Laura Petherbridge]
Stepparenting can be deeply meaningful, but it can also leave you feeling rejected, exhausted, and unsure of your place in the family. We know how painful it is to care about a child, invest your heart, and still feel pushed away.In this...
Simple Step: Get on the Same Page
ResourcesEpisode 167. Achievable Strategies to Make Your Marriage the Foundation of Your Blended FamilyEpisode 206.
242. Stepparent Burnout? 4 Steps to Reduce Resentment and Rebalance Roles
Stepparent burnout doesn't start in a dramatic moment. It develops quietly as a stepparent keeps giving, serving, adjusting, but ends up with this increasing feeling of being invisible, rejected, or alone.A stepparent may believe that lo...
Simple Step: Managing the Motivational Gap
Resources:Episode 241: Before you Take it Personally: Why the Backlash to Accept a Stepparent?
241. Before You Take It Personally: 5 Reasons Kids Resist a Stepparent
When we got married, we both wanted our new family to feel safe, connected, and secure. But good intentions didn’t prepare us for the painful tension that sometimes hit between Mike and Annika (Kim's daughter).If you’re a stepparent who ...
A Short Summer Pause and What’s Coming August 4th
We’re popping in with a short summer update before taking a brief pause from releasing new episodes throughout July 2026.But don’t worry, we’re not going anywhere!We’re using July to prepare some fun and helpful new things we’ll b...
Simple Step: How Patience and Persistence Create Space for Bonding
ResourcesEpisode 240. Energize Family Bonds One Meaningful Conversation at a Time [with Ashley Noelle]Order your Blended Bond Deck here:
240. Energize Family Bonds One Meaningful Conversation at a Time [with Ashley Noelle]
In blended family life, it’s easy for kids, parents, and stepparents to feel unsure, unseen, or disconnected as everyone adjusts to new relationships, new rhythms, and new expectations.We know how hard it can be to want deeper connection...
Simple Step: Healthy Boundaries that Protect Relationships
ResourcesClick here to schedule your FREE COACHING CALL239. Feeling Res...
239. Feeling Responsible for Everyone? How Codependency Hinders Family Relationships and How to Heal [with Michelle Farris]
Codependency can be tricky to recognize because it often looks like love, generosity, or “just trying to help.” But when our giving turns into fixing, rescuing, controlling, or sacrificing ourselves to earn love and approval, it can quietly cre...
Simple Step: Assertive Communication
ResourcesEpisode 50. How to Openly Communicate What You Really Want Episode 179.
238. Co-Parenting Conflict? 4 Tools for Effective Communication to Increase Cooperation and Create Boundaries
Co-parenting conversations can escalate fast, especially when an ex is reactive, manipulative, dismissive, or unreasonable. It’s tempting to defend yourself, fire back, or make a quick decision just to escape the pressure. But that kind of resp...
237. Communication Frustration? Gain Powerful Tools & Insight to Help Reduce Conflict & Stay Connected
If there’s one thing we’ve learned in our 25 years of marriage, parenting, and blended family life, it’s this: communication problems aren’t about bad intentions more often, they’re about lacking the right tools. In this episode, we...
Simple Step: Navigating Mother's Day
ResourcesEpisode 236. Does it Ever Get Easier? How to Stay Hopeful by Playing the Long Game [with Gayla Grace]Episode 157.
236. Does it Ever Get Easier? How to Stay Hopeful by Playing the Long Game [with Gayla Grace]
In this episode, we sit down with our friend Gayla Grace for a deeply encouraging conversation about what it really takes to build a strong blended family over time. Gayla candidly shares about the challenges she and her husband faced while ble...
Simple Step. The Value of 1 on 1 Bio-Time
Resources from this episodeEpisode 235. Stepparenting Takes Two: How to Build Connection and Avoid Common Wrong TurnsEpisode 103.
235. Stepparenting Takes Two: How to Build Connection and Avoid Common Wrong Turns
When we got married, we stepped into blended family life with a lot of hope, but also a lot of unrealistic expectations. We thought connection would come quickly, parenting would feel natural, and our new family would settle into place easily. ...
Simple Step: Outlaw Words that Drive Negativity
ResourcesEpisode 234. Caught in the Negative? How to Reframe Painful Moments and Regain Hope Episode 106. How to Avoid "Outlaw Words" [...
234. Caught in the Negative? How to Reframe Painful Moments and Regain Hope
The reality is, blended family life gives us plenty of painful moments to get caught up in: tension with an ex, a hard interaction with a stepchild, a family activity that goes sideways, or marital conflict. And it is easy for one negative mome...
Simple Step: 3 Financial Questions with Brian K. Peterson
ResourcesGet your FREE copy of Blended Family Finances (limited offer) by Brian K. PetersonTo connect with Brian,
233. Building a Life You Love: How to Reduce Stress and Create a Unified Financial Vision [with Brian K. Peterson]
Money is a hard topic for any couple, but in a blended family, it often carries even more weight. It’s rarely just about numbers. It’s about history, protection, prior commitments, loyalty, fear, values, and the future you’re trying to build to...