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Going to Bat for Your Spouse
“There’s a bat in the house!” John: Sometimes life presents unexpected opportunities for closeness. A few Sundays ago, a bat suddenly appeared, swooping and darting around the family room before settling into a hanging position above the fireplace.
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Reaching Out – Together
JULIE: During this bizarre time when we are all quarantined, I need reassurance that our friends and family members are safe and in a good place mentally. This is especially true of our young adult kids who are not only dealing with social isolation, but also unemployment. I also worry about our parents and siblings, especially my dad as he lives alone.
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Keeping Your Marriage Sane While Quarantined
Jen: Being quarantined and trying to limit your exposure to others is one thing and having kids at home adds another dimension. So many parents are trying to make a living and unexpectedly take care of their kids at home at the same time. No matter what your situation is, being quarantined at home can add stresses on your couple relationship that you haven’t experienced before.
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Love’s Sweet Spot
Photo Credit: Jose Mizrahi on Unsplash Many of you are familiar with theYin-Yang symbol or the phrase “opposites attract.” You know, the eternal optimist vs. the pessimist, the spontaneous adventurer vs. the live by the calendar person. Let’s call them complementary, not opposite. Think: You are the peanut butter to my jelly or the music to my dancing shoes.
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Empty Nest – Syndrome or Summit?
Janine: I remember when we had three children under the age of 5. One thing I fantasized about was being able to leave the house someday WITHOUT a diaper bag. I didn’t know if that day would ever come. In the midst of the wild and crazy parenting years, I couldn’t imagine what life would be like after kids. Before we knew it…our youngest child went off to college.
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What Happened to the Person I Married?
After starting out so in love with my spouse, how is it that I sometimes find him/her so annoying and hard to live with? What happened to the person I married?
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Marriage Magic
Photo Credit: Jared Lind on Unsplash As we become immersed in this holiday season we are drawn to the magic. Recall the wonder and awe of your childhood, reindeers that fly and a Santa who made dreams come true. Fast-forward several decades. Remember the rush of feelings when you knew your spouse was ‘the one‘. You reveled in discovering this person who showered you with love and support.
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Scorekeeping in Marriage
“Scorekeeping” in our marriage can lead to resentment. It starts with an attitude of “I deserve more” where we keep a tally of all the things we do for our spouse. “I did the laundry so he should do the dishes.” This is compounded by the fact that men and women keep score differently.
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Time for a Marriage Getaway? “Here’s Yer Sign”
You proposed. She accepted. White dress, wedding bells. New house, new bills. Kids. Jobs. TV. Internet. Full calendar. What happened? What’s next? Photo by Alyssa Ledesma on Unsplash We thought our marriage was “fine” but we were focused on running from one kid’s sports to the next kid’s music lessons. There wasn’t time for those long talks about our future. Even though we thought the honeymoon would last forever…it didn’t. We were more focused on the kids than on each other. As the romance faded, we gradually became more aware of each others’ flaws. We lost sight of who WE were as a couple.
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Intentional Marriage — 50 Ways
“Intentional” is a popular buzzword these days. We are intentional in the workplace, in the way we handle our finances, our fitness routine, and the way we raise and discipline our children. The list goes on and on and for good reason. Intentional means to do something deliberately, consciously or with purpose. It means it didn’t happen on a whim; someone planned for it to happen and persisted until it happened.
