By: Dr. George James We’ve all heard that it takes work to make relationships successful. At the same time, most of us do not know how much work (effort, commitment, communication and more) it takes. Just when you think you’ve learned how to juggle your needs and your partner’s needs, something or someone else gets added to the equation. For many, having children adds … [Read more...]
How To Get And Give The Appropriate Space In Your Marriage
by Chioma Catherine Okoroafor As kids, we depend on our parents for virtually everything. They bathe us, feed us, care for us and even dress us. But as we get into the adolescent stage, the consciousness of having our space becomes inevitable. We begin to have our secrets; we want our own rooms, our privacy, our friends, and also want to make our own decisions. As we become … [Read more...]
Cut Your Spouse Some Slack
I rang in the new year with horrid sinus issues, so I took advantage of the holiday and spent most of it in bed. I decided to call it an early night and get some rest, since my husband seemed to have everything under control downstairs with the kids. I had just turned out the light in our bedroom when my husband shooed the kids upstairs to get changed for bedtime. And where … [Read more...]
Do You Give Love Without Asking, “What’s In It For Me?”
When people ask me, "Tara, how do you do it?" I usually mutter something about how I'm still exhausted and I'm just doing the best I can, but I have to give credit where credit is due. My husband is simply amazing. Without complaint, he listens to me vent. This man has lifted me up over and over and over again. This year has been one of the hardest years of my life as I try … [Read more...]
Art of Love Relationship Series Recap: 50,000+ People Looking for Ways to Improve Marriage
The Art of Love Relationship series began this week and for those of you who haven't heard, it's a series of webcasts gathering many of the country's most renowned relationship experts to discuss all things love, marriage and relationships. Eleven webcasts are scheduled, each focusing on a different topic, all teaching us how to connect, have better and more frequent sex, … [Read more...]
What’s So Great About Your Spouse And Have You Told Him/Her Lately?
I always find it amazing how well my husband knows me. I mean he knows me, knows me. It's almost eerie. He knows me below the surface. I can't fool him, not that I would want to, but I know I would be unable to. Just the other day I was complaining about something and I mentioned why I was complaining and he knew it wasn't the real reason. He told me exactly what I was thinking … [Read more...]
Commitment Lasts Through Sickness and Health
by Carol Dunlop It was a day like any other day in January of this year (2011). My husband and I went our separate ways to work, completed the work day and drove towards home. We had to make a stop by the tire shop, so I decided to accompany him. We were there roughly thirty minutes when Alvin, my husband, decided that I should go on home because he would be a while longer. … [Read more...]
Do You Get Served?
I'm curious as to how many of you had an immediate negative reaction upon reading this title. Wives, did you initially think it was directed at you? If so, it's a pretty common retort. Over the years married women have struggled with the idea of serving their husband. In fact, I too found it challenging early in my marriage. As I began getting to know my in-laws I observed … [Read more...]
Be A Cheerleader In Your Marriage
I remember the feel of the sheets at the W Hotel where I sat at the end of the queen size bed. It was sunrise and I was sitting at the end of the bed staring out of the floor-to-ceiling windows at the clouds hanging above the Atlanta skyline. I couldn't move anything except my hands, which were moving back and forth across the sheets. The night before my flight from New York … [Read more...]
Why Is It So Hard To Ask For What We Need In A Relationship?
I'm not ashamed to say that for the past week or so, the grind of being a work-at-home mom was getting to me. I was angry and tired and just ready for someone else to step up and take the wheel while I took a nap in the backseat, you know? I was tired of cleaning the house every day, and working until 3 a.m. and cooking three meals a day and taking care of the kids all day. … [Read more...]
Change Doesn’t Happen Overnight
by Tara Pringle Jefferson An ongoing struggle throughout our short marriage has been the division of labor in our household. I've often felt like I'm shouldering 90% of the day-to-day work, while my husband gets the seasonal tasks of shoveling the driveway and mowing the lawn. We've tried 3,232 ways to make it work but we always seemed to end up in the same place: Me, … [Read more...]