Money Can’t Buy Me Love… 😍

Ken: It’s all over the news…. First Jeff Bezos and now Bill Gates have become divorcees. Two of the richest men in the world didn’t find married bliss, so how am I supposed to? How do we find lasting happiness in our marriage? My mom has always said…

“Men and women are totally different creatures- it’s amazing they can live together!” There’s some truth to that. Early in our marriage, we delighted in our differences. Then, gradually those differences became irritations. We went from a shiny new happy couple to a dented and scratched version that some might consider trading in. 

Is Marriage Worth It?

Janine: It’s not easy to stay married.  It couldn’t have been easy for Bill and Melinda. Can you imagine what it would be like to have the whole world watching you?  One YouTuber made the following interesting comments: “I don’t think the purpose of marriage is to be happy.  I think happiness is a by-product. I think the purpose of getting married is to help each other get through difficult times and to raise children.  And if you do that, you’re going to end up happy anyways. But it’s a different type of happiness – not the type of happiness that Hollywood sells you.”   

Love Like There’s No Tomorrow

Ken: We’ve all heard that a relationship should be 50/50. At some point, we realized that doesn’t work. It created a constant measuring of “What are you doing for me?” Janine and I started to move toward a different model:  one where we each give 100%. When we try to out-do each other in love, that’s a recipe for success. 

Priceless Moments

We know money doesn’t buy happiness. We have heard some great stories from friends about times when they experienced romance and joy (more than just happiness) in the “little” moments. A couple we know shared how she was swept away and felt like Cinderella one afternoon, when her husband picked her up for a ride on the tractor. One of our magical moments was when we spontaneously packed up wine and cheese and drove out to the countryside for a couple hours away from our teenagers. Sounds simple, but it was awesome! 

We would love to hear from you. In the comments below tell us about a time(s) when you and your spouse did something small that gave life to your marriage.