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Is Your House Killing Your Marriage?

Is where you live making life more difficult for your marriage? That’s something that occurred to me and obviously to others too like architect Michelle McSharry.In the article yesterday about Australian Fathers, Michelle McSharry suggested two factors are making life harder for couples. One is the size of homes and gardens which is contributing to a high housework load. It’s an interesting fact of modern society that houses are getting larger while the size of families in them is shrinking. Most houses no longer include grandparents or extended family as they once did. It is usually only the husband, wife … Continue reading →

Handle Stress in Your Marriage

With high mortgages, job losses and the economic situation putting further stress on people, marriages are being affected. How do we cope with the stresses of life and the changes that occur? Some people have seen their future savings for a home or retirement on their investments in the stock market eaten into. Others are struggling day to day just to keep food on the table and the family clothed. I know what that one is like. We spent many years in that situation where experts told you to save but there simply wasn’t anything to save because we’d chosen … Continue reading →

Finances, Work and Marriage

Who is the main financial planner in your marriage? Is it you or your spouse? According to Nancy Gibbs in her article What Women Want Now, 65% of women cite themselves as being the family’s main financial planner. 71% labeled themselves the ’family accountant.’ Mediamark Research and Intelligence tends to back up those claims saying women in the make 75% of the buying decision in home in the USA. I wonder is it any different in Australia or the U.K. Anyone care to comment? Despite the recession and economic downturn many women have more control over money than ever before. … Continue reading →

Working Women a Contributing Factor in Marriage and Family Break-Ups

Working women are contributing to marriage and family break-ups. A recent survey in the United Kingdom came to this conclusion. They found after a study of British childhood that ‘women’s increasing economic independence from their male partners is contributing to family break-ups which is in turn damaging children.’ At the risk of being shot down in flames, I admit I’m old fashioned enough to agree. Yet, it really stands to reason. Depending on the type of job they have, women can be earning more than their men. Some men struggle to deal with that, as it makes them feel inferior. … Continue reading →

Recession Effects on Marriage – Your Choice

Experts are coming out with prophecies of doom and gloom about recession and its effect on marriage. Dr. Matthew Bambling, an Australian psychologist from Queensland University of Technology, has waned that ‘the impact of the economic crisis is bound to put emotional pressure on relationships.’ But it doesn’t have to. Those of us who have been through loss of jobs, increased interest rates and problems trying to buy a home, have found that those hard times can actually bring a couple closer, if we let it. Talking recently with friends we laughed over some of the struggles we had financially … Continue reading →

Save Time and Money with a Crock Pot

The second appliance I consider essential in the kitchen, and nowhere near as expense as an upright freezer, is the crock pot. It is a useful way of using cheaper cuts of meat and making it mouth wateringly tender. It also saves money. When you’ve been out at work all day, or even if you’re a stay at home Mom running around after a young family, the last thing you need when you’re tired is to think about preparing a meal. Rather than opting for take out, you can have a healthy meal cooking during the day. It means a … Continue reading →

Focus on What You Have

In marriage it’s not about what you own, not even sometimes about what you do. It’s about being together and enjoying each other’s company. Since it was a beautiful sunny winter’s day, after lunch yesterday we bundled our little dog into the car and drove to one of the quiet beaches near us. It was not deserted as we’d expected but still only a few groups of people on the beach. Some brave souls were in the water. We were not two of them. We walked along the beach, sat for a while watching the teal water as they waves … Continue reading →

Buying a House as a Couple

Whether you are buying your first house as a married couple or you’re further along the track, given the current economic climate it is more important than ever that you know what you’re doing. One of the first things when looking for a house is to look at your budget and what you can afford. Know what you can reasonably repay and don’t over commit yourself, so that if something goes wrong and you have sudden medical expenses etc, that you are left tying to figure out how to pay the mortgage. Over committing finances puts too much strain and … Continue reading →

Is Quality Time a Myth?

Working women are you short changing your spouse and your children? When talking yesterday with Mick about the blog I’d written about working women and marriage, he came up with several comments I thought were worth noting about the amount of time spent with children in particular. Yes, we‘ve all heard the phrase ‘quality time’ and how parents should spend ‘quality time’ with their spouse and their children. But what does this mean exactly? The reality is that if they are working full time, the amount of time the working woman can realistically spend with their spouse and children is … Continue reading →