Stepmom refuses to let her 8 and 10-year-old step-daughters take her last name despite their desire to do so: 'It would make no sense to change their name to mine'

If you've been on specific online forums for any amount of time, you know that stories about nefarious stepparents are familiar. These tales fall into one of two categories: either the stepparent is overstepping their bounds, or they couldn't care less about the child they are raising. I'd imagine in real life, most stepparents fall somewhere in the middle of the stepmom who is trying to replace her stepchildren's mother as the most crucial female relative in their life, and the stepdad who would rather not have any kids in his life at all.

Kids have so little autonomy in their family situations, and even in the best step-parent situations, it can be challenging for them to adjust. Adults in their lives should give them some level of choice in how they interact with their stepparent. They should be able to choose whether to call their stepmom by her first name or by a maternal nickname. Their stepmom might not feel ready to be called "mom," but if her stepchildren don't have any other maternal figures in their lives, it might be the right choice for the kids.

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via Lisa Marie Theck

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The stepmom in this story is uncomfortable with her stepkids adopting the hyphenated version of her husband's last name and her own last name for their new baby. Her stepdaughters want to have the same last name as their brother, and she is extremely against it. But what's the harm?
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Am I the bad guy for saying my step kids don't need to have the same last name as my kid?

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