Totally fucking awesome. I hated him at first, but now he is my confidant in a horrible situation and I am so grateful for him.

So, he met and married my mom in like a month's time. They went on a whirlwind protest and both sides were a little uneasy. Turns out he had some shady shit in his past too. I hated him on principal for a year. I was twenty two.

Now I am thirty. My mom has leukemia and I call him everyday. I love the man like a father. He isn't perfect, but holy shit did he man up went shit went south.

The only answer for the step-parent question is that they will reveal their true self to you in time. I hope they are badass. I wish I could take back some of the hateful shit I said, but it is all water under the bridge--now that he is a second father to me in my small and fractured family. I got cool-as-fuck little nephews and neices too. What a deal.

Moral of the story: I'm sure they are all different, but reserve judgement, because there is a reason your own flesh and blood love them.