Shaunie and Keion Henderson know firsthand that co-parenting isn’t an overnight success. From witnessing their parents’ unhealthy co-parenting as children to learning to co-parent as divorced adults, the Hendersons may not be experts but they are experienced. In this episode, they provide suggestions for how to sidestep pitfalls and offer a healthy alternative to blending a family. Shaunie recalls how her mother’s emotions put a strain on her relationship with her half-siblings. And Keion explains what it was like to be the child caught between parents in a blended family. 

The two talk about why “co-parenting isn’t about you,” how to “protect your child from the pressure to pick a side,” and why it's important as parents to deal with your trauma. Sharing candidly from their own experiences, Shaunie and Keion elaborate on how planting seeds of love requires growth on the inside. “The parents' decisions create the conditions for healthy or unhealthy co-parenting,” Keion says. He asserts that what you bring into a blended family (the seeds) “always survives the blend.”