Shopping with Your Spouse

Do you and your spouse shop together for clothes? Or do you simply go and buy your spouse’s clothes? Or do they go on their own and buy clothes? I’ve heard of women who want to buy all the clothes for their man without any input from him. Their attitude seems to be ‘what he would know about what looks good on him. I’ll tell him what looks good.’ Such an attitude undermines him and refuses to allow him to think for himself. The reverse would also be true if the husband went shopping for the wife and chose all … Continue reading

Marriage During the Great Depression

Yesterday I wrote about how I’m bracing my marriage for a depression. I also admitted that I’m afraid of what’s to come…but that I’m going to face that fear head on and find a way to make all this benefit my marriage. I’m still not entirely sure how I’m going to do that, but I figured knowledge is power so my best bet is to start off arming myself with some of that. Researching the Great Depression If only my grandparents were still alive. Both sets survived the Great Depression. They could advise me how they made it, maybe give … Continue reading

Bracing My Marriage for a Depression

I hadn’t been too worried about all the economic doom and gloom swarming the news these days until a couple of weeks ago. My husband’s job is sort of dependent on investors being able to get credit to buy businesses. If people can’t get financing, that means there won’t be any deals and he’ll be out of work. Needless to say the number of banks going under, some of which have financed projects Wayne’s worked on in the past, alarmed me. But yesterday I grew even more concerned. Causes for Concern It started when Today interviewed Jim Cramer of Mad … Continue reading

Recession Benefitting Your Marriage: Quality Together Time

The other day I got to thinking about an article I wrote earlier this year where I wondered if recession might actually benefit our marriages. I had visions of turning the concept into a mini-series. Alas, so far I only offered suggestions on ways to recession-proof your marriage with dinner. But recently I was reminded about this forsaken series of articles I’d planned to write. Thanks to our trip to Alaska, we’ve been trying to conserve resources. Therefore, more and more I’ve been considering ways Wayne and I could spend quality time together, be active and have fun, yet not … Continue reading

The Marriage Blog Week in Review for April 28 – May 4

Lyn and I were joined by a familiar face last week, a former regular Marriage Blog contributor: Heather Long. Between the three of us we had a fair amount to say. In case you missed any of it, here’s your handy Week in Review! Monday, April 28 I suggested ways to recession proof your marriage with dinner. (And hopefully enhance it in the process.) Lyn addressed the problem of spending too much time online. (A problem both husbands and wives are guilty of.) Tuesday, April 29 Lyn contemplated the song “love me or let me go” and how it applies … Continue reading

Families.com Marriage Blog Makes a Top 100 List

This morning when I checked my emails I was greeted with a nice surprise. A lady named Fiona King had written to tell me that her website (I believe it’s called Nerds Do It Better which is somehow connected/sponsored by/or otherwise affiliated with 100BestDatingSites) had posted an article called “Ask the Experts: 100 Best Blogs for Relationship Advice.” She thought it might be something I thought Families.com readers would find interesting, and also pointed out the Families.com Marriage Blog had made the list. Yes, you read that right, you awesome Marriage Blog devotees. You helped put us on a Top … Continue reading

Recession Proof Your Marriage: Dinner

The other day I proposed that marriages could actually benefit from recession. To start us off on the right-thinking foot, I proposed giving thanks for what we have right now. (Mainly, each other and any time we spend together, because that’s precious in and of itself.) Sometimes it just takes looking at all the good we enjoy to realize everything else isn’t as bad as it seems. However, I also hinted that I’d explore other ways a recession could benefit marriage. After giving the matter some thought, I’ve come up with some date night ideas. Ones that use the recession … Continue reading

Your Marriage Benefiting from Recession?

As I’ve repeated more than once in various articles, I’m a huge fan of Sarah Ban Breathnach and her Simple Abundance approach to life. Speaking of Simple Abundance, if I’m remembering correctly it was born during a time when another recession was under way. Back in the early 1990s. Ms. Breathnach wanted to find a way to get more out of life with less, not just materially but spiritually too. So she revamped her life and her way of thinking about life and created what has become a transformative guidebook instructing other women how to achieve both as well. This … Continue reading

Make Time For Each Other

In all marriages it is important to make time to be together, alone- away from family and friends. It doesn’t matter whether you’ve been married a long time or only a short time, whether your have a family or not. We need to take time just to spend together, enjoying each other’s company and connecting. Too often, work and family pressures can stop us from spending time together. It is too easy to get caught up in the busyness of life and neglect what, after our relationship with God, should be our most important relationship, that with our spouse. They … Continue reading