If there is anything almost nine years of marriage has taught me, it’s that I can’t get my husband to read my mind. Yep, despite my best efforts, that brotha just can’t do it. Consider it a shortcoming if you must, but I realize that he’s just human. My husband is actually human. Shocking, right? After all, didn’t he get the memo that marrying me meant that he needed to … [Read more...]
How to Stay Together When Your Family and Friends Want You to Divorce
For years, my husband Don and I had an extremely rocky marriage. During those tumultuous years, I confided in a lot of girlfriends. I told them everything he did and did not do. I was painting a picture of him that had them not speaking to him or wanting to be around him. When things were at their worst, I ran my mouth. Straight up. I even convinced myself that I was going … [Read more...]
5 Straightforward Steps to Becoming a Better Wife
I think we are all a work in progress. Anyone who isn’t trying to make improvements, daily, is pretty self-absorbed if you ask me. After all, none of us are perfect. Now, I’m not suggesting that you shouldn’t be happy with who you are. I happen to love myself. But I also know that I am flawed. I make mistakes every day. But I want to do better. I want to be a better mom … [Read more...]
3 Things You Need to Do if You Want Your Marriage to Have a Fighting Chance
Sometimes, my husband gets on my last nerve. I don’t care how wonderful I think he is (and he is wonderful), he is human. He has the capacity to work my nerves. But I’m no fool. I am certain I can do the same. There is no doubt in my mind that I get on his nerves, too. And although getting on each other’s nerves is pretty common in even the happiest marriages, it does make … [Read more...]
A Dozen Great Ways to Keep Your Relationship Fresh
As I reflect on my relationship (which I have been in now for over 16 years, more than a 1/3 of my life), I am so grateful for the fact that it doesn’t feel that long. In fact, the longer we're in it, the better it gets. And as I take a step back to reflect, there are definitely some intentional things that we did that have kept us both happy, fulfilled, and feeling like the … [Read more...]
9 Scriptures that Keep You From Harming Your Spouse with Your Words
Sometimes you need to give your spouse the silent treatment. I know this sounds weird and contradictory, so let me explain. I’m talking about speaking life. And when you can’t speak life, that’s the time to use the silent treatment. My mom (and maybe your mom too) used to say, “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all.” Well that saying still holds true … [Read more...]
Why Fighting For My Marriage is the Best Thing I’ve Ever Done
A few years ago, Don and I were at a crossroad in our marriage and we had to decide if we were going to remain married even though we didn’t like each other. It was not easy to live with this question hanging over my head nor was it pretty. The realization that we did not like each other was painful, but we had no idea how to break from it. One day, we decided to have a … [Read more...]
Seven Strategies that Saved My Marriage
I’m going to be totally honest with you: sometimes, I am annoyed when folks say they want a marriage like mine and Don’s. What they don’t know is that we experienced many ups and downs in our marriage. The 'downs' seemed to last forever. We’ve experienced the difficulties of blending a family, numerous periods of unemployment, a child going to jail, alcoholism and an emotional … [Read more...]
Challenge: 30 Days of Service to Your Spouse…Can You Handle It?
Don and I decided to do a 30 Days of Service Challenge after watching the below video by Comedian Mike Goodwin. Mike decided to do something every day to serve his wife for an extended period of time - - 30 days. I thought it was going to easy to knock out. Wrong! The first few days we were enthusiastic about out-serving each other. He made me breakfast in bed on more than one … [Read more...]
15 Signs You are Single-Handedly Sabotaging Your Marriage
Everyone always talks about how hard it is to build and sustain a healthy, happy relationship. And I agree. And no, it’s not all hard work. I have plenty of fun with my husband and I cherish all of those good times. But, I can definitely acknowledge that it’s not always fun and games. Sometimes it’s challenging as hell. But we all make decisions, every day, that can … [Read more...]
6 Ways to Make Your Husband Feel Loved Outside of the Bedroom
If your husband is anything like mine, he appreciates some loving outside of the bedroom. We know our husbands are sexual beings. However, there is more to the connection between husband and wife than sex. I’m talking about whatever affection is to your man. I know what affection looks like to me, but it took me some time to learn what affection means to my husband. I had to … [Read more...]
Top 10 Things Women Love To Do On Valentine’s Day
[tps_header] Valentine’s Day is around the corner. For many, this day of love comes with some stress due to the uncertainty around gift ideas. It doesn’t have to be that way, though. Honestly, it shouldn’t be that way. Expressing yourself to the woman you love should come easily. February 14th shouldn’t be about how much you spend or how many gifts you buy. It should be a … [Read more...]
How I learned to Let My Husband Raise My Son
Sometimes blending those as step-family as there may be biological parents to deal with or the spouse entering the new family may find it difficult to parent someone else’s child. I had a two year old son when I met my husband and he had no children. The biological father really wasn’t a presence so there was no problem on that front. The problem was me. I had to learn to let … [Read more...]
3 Signs That Your Marriage is Really Worth Fighting For
Marriage isn’t a requirement in our culture. People get married because they want to. Now of course we can debate whether or not folks are getting married for the right reasons, but whatever those reasons are, it is a personal choice. And for most of us, the decision to get married is not one taken likely. Some serious thought usually takes place before people decide to say, … [Read more...]
Wake-up Call: Divorce Begins Long Before She Walks Out the Door
When she packed her bags, and walked out the door he was shocked. He didn't see it coming. What happened? What did he miss? Was there another man? No, there wasn't another man. However, there was a woman who felt alone in her own home. You see, her divorce began way before she walked out that door. Being a life partner now seemed like a life sentence for her. This had been … [Read more...]