It means they?™re going to be around. It means you might feel pushed out or neglected at times. Weekends, Christmas, Easter, birthdays and those summer breaks, these are the moments you can often find yourself wondering about the complications, the headaches, the bickering between kids, your role, and that biggy: do I really fit in here?

If you haven?™t been keeping your relationship strong - fresh and alive - you can, during these times, begin to wonder what you?™re in it for. You might even wonder if you can or want to really stick it out.

But it doesn?™t need to be that way. Indeed, for lots of stepparents it isn?™t. Being a stepparent can be very rewarding and enjoyable. If the stepfamily functions well you get time with your partner when they?™re with their other parent. You get to enjoy your part in the kid?™s adventures. You get to see these young people grow and develop and become adaptable, flexible, confident and compassionate men and women.

One of the most important ways to prevent yourself from getting to the stage where you?™re wondering if you can stick it out is to nurture your relationship, keeping it strong and alive.

So here are my top 5 tips for making sure you?™ve got plenty of emotional energy in your relationship to breeze through the tough times.

1. Have a vision. Talk with your partner about your joint vision and dreams for the future. Know where you both want to go and how you?™d like life to be.