Partner’s daughter (6F) finding this hard, looking for advice
Hi all
I (41F) have been with my partner (41M) for nearly 5 years. We introduced the kids very carefully about 2.5 years ago - he has one child and I have two girls (9F and 12F). Mine are very close and whilst they aren’t *excited* to hang out with him and his daughter, they adore him and do care about his child (when we are apart they see things she would like and comment about how we should show/tell her, when her pet was recently PTS they were worried about how she would be).
His daughter is apparently always excited to see us (she is desperate for siblings and play dates, though I always tell him spending time with us is not a play date) but has expressed on a couple of occasions that she feels left out and doesn’t want to see them anymore. As previously mentioned, my two are very close and don’t necessarily need another sibling, but I want everyone to feel cared for and valued. Occasionally the three of them will bicker like siblings, but my partner isn’t used to this because his daughter is an only child so I think it concerns him.
We have dinner every week and see eachother once every other weekend, which means opportunities to grow closer are relatively limited so I’m looking for ideas from you about things that have worked when bringing children from two families together. One day I’d love to live with my partner, but he’s hesitant whilst his daughter is still expressing concerns.
Any tips or tricks for ways to encourage more familiarity and closeness would be really welcomed! Thanks in advance :)