Dating a single mom and really bonding with her son

I have been dating a woman who has an amazing 6 year old son. We have really bonded in the time me and his mom have started dating. He gets a little shy with me at times and will not outright ask me to play with him, but kinda just look at me until I do or ask his mom. His dad is in his life maybe 6 times a year. I don’t think he really knows what the role of a father truly is, but find when we are together he gravitates towards me. He recently told his mom he wanted me to be at every ninja practice he has and was adamant about it. He and his mom are having real behavioral issues but he is sweet and friendly with me. I try to role model for him by being nice to his mom, showing he visible respect and appreciation, getting the door, paying her compliments. I try not to intervene when he is outright disrespectful to her. The only time I toe the line of discipline is when he is rude or disrespectful to me, which is rare and usually I just tell him I didn’t think that was nice and tell him not to talk to me that way. He responds positively to that. I guess my question is how do I be a good father type to him over time? I feel like father is a role I would love to transition into, but I have a feeling he may be a difficult child as he ages, based on his behavior towards his mom. It seems there is little true discipline in his life i.e. no clear consequences to negative actions. His mom and I started a little rocky, as it was hard for me to understand the time and energy restraints that come with being a single mom, I didn’t see him for about 2 months, but have seen him every Sunday for the last month. I do things with him that his father has never done. Her and I have now fallen into a good groove and she wants him in my life. We even did a big hike together the other day. I love both of them very much. His mom and I have a good, solid friendship and are on the same page. I just want to be the best role model possible, what’s your advice?Tl;DR Currently dating a single mom, I have started to take on small fatherly roles. How do I transition into stepfather hood in a way that is healthy for him? via /r/Parenting https://ift.tt/2EscLvz