Being a parent is truly rewarding but a difficult job at times to say the least. If you are a step-parent, things could have the tendency to be even harder. But there is one step-parent that seems to have found her groove and is winning at parenting. Gabrielle Union sat down with HelloBeautiful to talk about becoming a stepmom to Dwyane Wade’s kids.
The 50-year-old actress told Tarana Burke in her cover interview that in order to initiate a successful journey in becoming someone’s step-parent, she had to first examine how she herself was parented.
“I think my journey to self – I had to go back to childhood and examine how I was parented.”
Union continued saying that, “So when I became a stepmom I was like, I don’t know what I’m supposed to be doing. They have a mom, she’s alive. I don’t know what I’m supposed to be doing, but like I’m here with them every day.”
The Cheaper By The Dozen actress admitted in her interview that she wasn’t sure whether she was supposed to be friend or parent?
“Am I supposed to be a friend? I had to figure out how to be consistent and nurturing and compassionate and love for each of them. I knew that one size fits all was not gonna work.”
Union and Wade are blessed to share five beautiful children in their roles as parent/step-parent. The actress and NBA legend are parents to four-year-old Kaavia James, Wade’s children from previous relationships: nine-year-old son Xavier Zechariah, 15-year-old daughter Zaya and 20-year-old son Zaire. Wade is also the legal guardian of his 21-year-old nephew Dahveon Morris.
In 2017, Union told People Magazine in an interview that being stepmom to Wade’s kids changed her thoughts on having children.
“I never wanted kids,” she told the popular entertainment news outlet. “Then I became a stepmom, and there was no place I’d rather be than with them.”
And of course, it shows! Gabrielle Union is truly one incredible stepmom.
