Blake Shelton’s Upbringing Helps Him Become a Better Family Man | His Own Dad Set an “Example” of Ideal Parent

The Voice's much-loved judges, Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani also make a fun-loving couple. "She is the most understanding, kind-hearted person I've ever met and I learn something from her every day," Shelton said about his then rocker girlfriend, per People.

The couple met in 2015 on the sets of The Voice and dated for five years to later tie the knot in 2021. Shelton announced on Instagram that he is leaving the singing competition after 12 years. Season 23 is going to be the country musician's last stint on the series. He will be focusing on being a good family man and a caring father. He hasn't shied away from expressing how much he loves his stepsons and how inspiring his own stepdad was in prioritizing the more important things in life, like family. 

Shelton is prioritizing time with Stefani, and her sons Kingston, Zuma, and Apollo after decades of focusing on his career, per People. "If I walked away from my career at this time, the only thing that I run the risk of is having regrets that I'm missing out on some more important things in life. For now, that's our kids. This isn't about me anymore and never will be again. Even though I'm a stepparent, I take that job very seriously. The kids see me as a very important person in their life," he said.

Stefani shares her three children with ex-husband Gavin Rossdale of the rock band Bush. During an appearance at the Country Radio Seminar in Nashville. Shelton stated that when he and Stefani first started dating, she was concerned that her children would be a deal breaker, as per Good Morning America. "I think Gwen thought when we first started seeing each other that it was just gonna be a moment in time because of that," he shared.

The country musician had such an upbringing that being a family man came naturally to him. He revealed that his own father, Richard, who also served as a stepfather to his brother, Richie, was a model example of what it meant to be a father figure to him. "My dad, when he married my mom -- my mom had a baby, my brother, Richie," he said. "And he took Richie on and raised him from the time he was one year old and my brother never thought of my dad as anything other than his dad. The example that my dad set for me was that was not even a consideration," Shelton explained. He added that every day he has "fallen in love with the boys as much as I do with Gwen."

Shelton shared how Stefani and he celebrate Christmas with a delicious holiday tradition where they "challenge ourselves and try to come up with a different, weird, complicated, and difficult thing to cook every year. It started one year [when] she wanted to do a beef Wellington, which is not easy, by the way," he told US Weekly. He went on to say that while both cooking and singing with Stefani present unique challenges, cooking is less difficult because they're both doing it for fun. "With music, we actually take [it] seriously," he added.  

References:

https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/blake-shelton-details-holiday-cooking-tradition-with-gwen-stefani/

https://people.com/country/blake-shelton-putting-family-first-barmageddon-cover-story/

https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/story/blake-shelton-talks-stepfather-father-set-83202844

https://people.com/country/blake-shelton-gwen-stefani-kindhearted-understanding-happy-anywhere/

Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Photo by Emma McIntyre