When Scott Schneider was about to marry for the second time, he wanted to explain what was going on to his son, then 4, and his new wife's two children, a boy, 7, and a girl, 5. Like many parents do, he visited a bookstore, only to find that there weren't really any books that addressed stepfamilies in an informative way.

"When I talked to my son, he didn't even know what the term 'step' meant because he'd never been around any blended families at all," says Schneider. "We really had to start from scratch, and I thought it would be great if there was a children's book that could help parents with this conversation."

Schneider and his new wife, Terese, went on to write Blending My New Family. It's a look at how a family successfully blended, and it addresses issues such as sharing, which Schneider acknowledges that his son, used to being an only child, had a problem with. However, it also shows how a blended family can be a positive experience, such as his son's thrill to have a couple of extra cheerleaders when he was learning to ride a bike.

"We've had our ups and downs, but overall blending our families has been a wonderful experience," says Schneider. "This book is a wonderful vehicle for opening up topics such as what do we call the new family members. It's an example of how great it is when things go well and may encourage other families to try a little harder."