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I didn't leave. My bride and I made a life together. My bride and I celebrated out 20th anniversary this past summer with a full meal deal beautiful vow renewal ceremony with our friends and family at a Vinyard/Winery near my rides home town. A week later the Skid turned 22.

He officiated our vow renewal and did an amazing job. I am proud to have made an amazing life with my bride and proud to have raised an amazing young man of character as my own.

Okay, so I am not a woman but I am a long time StepDad.

Not sure but after the week I have had I am seriously thinking of finding out! It's not a life for everyone, that's for sure!

Based off of the stories on here, the best first step is to start separating finances. Set up accounts in your name and begin to save for a place to rent/own on your own unless there is violence then you need to move immediately into a shelter or with family. Sweetpea and her kids moved out of her husbands and skids house but I think they are still trying to make it work; look for her blogs and follow her story. The next step is up to you, you can keep trying to make it work but live in separate houses or just be done.

Tipping point: My relationship with my Fiancée was years of bliss, until the day his daughter decided she did not like me anymore. One night she cried to her father how much she dislikes me… But admitted that I was nothing but kind to her, but we “did not click” and she did not “like the way I dress” or how “young I look”. To her, these were valid reasons to dislike someone. And fiancée let her have these beliefs.

She started to use me as an excuse not to come over her father’s house anymore. He began to blame me for her absents, and keep telling me every day “the reason my daughter will not see me anymore is because you’re here”. He totally withdrew his love from me as a result. So I began looking for properties. I finally move out next week. This has been the most heartbreaking, confusing, angry and frustrating time of my life. I would not wish this on my worst enemy.

Still living with him these last few weeks, (as I began to settle on new property) has been full of sarcasm and mean comments from him. My advice is to move out as soon as possible. The negativity begins to make you feel crazy. Good luck and God bless.

The final resolution. I adopted the kid last year ... at his request. So.... I am no longer a Step Dad. I have gradiated to REAL dad with papers and everything.

Their father worked out of town for long stretches at a time and I was raising his kids full-time. I'm not going to say it was any one moment that was the tipping point, as it took me several months to finally put my foot down, but it became abundantly clear that his job was always going to be more important to him than me or his children were. I was miserable all the time and rather than doing anything to help make things better for me, all he'd say was that I was being too negative and he was tired of hearing the same things over and over. That's just no way to live. My family and friends were a huge support system for me, they are what kept me strong. I own my home so he had to move out, not me.

As an aside, I have recently started dating a wonderful man (no kids) and I'm back to my happy and carefree self. Breakups are awful and it was really, really hard and heartbreaking at the time (and I miss the kids), but life does go on and you will be happy again!

Tipping point: "I'll always take her side". After years of things going well when we agreed, but when we didn't agree...it was rough. He was a classic Disney Dad who felt guilt for putting his daughter through divorce. It was years of watching him constantly entertain her, and ensure that she didn't feel a moment of unease. It was fine for me to pay for everything, but not if I had an opinion. The tipping point was her 12th birthday. I planned, everything, bought her gift and that night, she made a rude comment to me, which I called her out on. Our whole marriage was the highest of highs but the lowest of lows.

That night he said something like "I'll always take her side". And that was it. I knew this was going to be my life. This girl with adult status. I was done.

We separated 3 years ago, divorced this year. (I'm still an occasional lurker on this site).

He's now with another woman who has 2 girls. So three teenaged girls. I often wonder how things are going for him. How his daughter is ACTUALLY dealing with her dad paying attention to other girls her age.

Not my problem.

Thank God!