Marriage

The art of marital negotiation

Every conflict in your marriage is an opportunity to fall more deeply in love.

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Just a note

There is a list in my mind of my favorite things to read. Those things that make me smile, as I read and think about the words before me. One of those things is a recipe in my grandma’s handwriting. Raising six kids, grandma knew her way around the kitchen and was able to keep everyone’s tummy full of good things.  Holidays were special…

Spend a day with the marriage nerds

If you made a New Year Resolution this year {there’s a 55% chance you did} there’s a 1-in-3 chance that your resolve didn’t last past January. Often, that’s because the goals aren’t clear or measurable, or there’s no strategy for getting there. I have something that might help – even…

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The gift of prayer

Leslie Vernick helps us intercede for our spouses when it isn't easy.

You complete me

If you grew up during the 1990’s, you might recall one of the “hottest” romantic movies of that era—Jerry Maguire. For those of us who’ve seen the movie, who can forget the cheesy, lovey-dovey line delivered by none other than Tom Cruise? During what may be the movie’s most memorable scene, Tom Cruise enters, looks intently…

My worst Valentine’s Day fail (so far)

Valentines Day will be here before you know it! While some anticipate the day with great excitement, others shy away from the day, or would even prefer to forget the whole thing. I’ll never forget my biggest Valentines Day fail. It so happened that my wife was on a pretty strict diet that year—so chocolates was out. In addition,…

Second chance at love

8 years ago, August 14th was possibly the worst day of my life. My husband died suddenly and my world was thrown off its axis for quite some time. I came to the decision that I would live out my life trying to be the best person I could be and because of our blended marriage I was blessed with three gorgeous grand-kids so I’d be the best…

Lessons learned from marrying young

My husband and I started dating when we were sixteen. I saw a sixteen year old at Panera Bread the other day, and I can hardly believe that I was her age when I started falling for Luke. I love the fact that we have grown up together, changed together, and figured out who we are together. But even though our years of dating gave us a…

The KISS approach to marriage

When conflicts arise, making a marriage work can seem incredibly difficult…even impossible. Though emotions become intense, heated, sad, fearful, or even avoidant, don’t despair. These are all clues that you and your spouse really care! If you didn’t care, there would be very little emotion. Many couples, however, don’t…