Families come in all shapes and sizes, beyond the “Leave it to Beaver” variety, in which mom is married to dad — and the nuclear family lives under one roof. So it’s no wonder that Joe Hawkey’s vacation photos Disney World are going viral.
The photographer and father of 7-year-old Maddie captured a beautiful family moment, but one that is still underrepresented in the media: because it includes both of Maddie’s stepparents. (Joe is married to Brianna, and Maddie’s mom, Tiffany, is married to Luke.)
What makes this particularly special is the fact that everyone appears to be co-parenting in a healthy, loving and supportive way. In the photos, Maddie’s divorced parents and her stepparents wear t-shirts that read “#co-parenting.” Maddie’s shirt has her name, and the hashtag “#bestdayever.”According to Pop Sugar, Disney World is Maddie’s favorite place, so her parents and stepparents worked together to plan the visit.
Which is not to say that Joe and Tiffany were always on such good terms. As Joe put it, this kind of collaborative parenting “definitely doesn’t happen overnight.”
Parenting after divorce isn’t easy, but this family’s perspective sure gives us hope.
You can see Joe Hawkey’s family photography below:
