Building Relationships

Building Community

A few months ago, Ian and I sat in our living room, praying together for a couple that we could build a strong relationship with. One that would just embrace us for the broken people we are and help us grow.

We wanted needed people to do life with.

Two days later, they knocked on our [...]

How to Make Friends

My Sister Root, Megan, and her hubby Justin.

When I dubbed 2011 The Year of Building Relationships, I had no idea it would be so rich. I thought that I might make a couple new friends and talk to existing ones a bit more often, but it was so much more than that.

The people that [...]

21 Ways to Have More Fun in Your Marriage

After nine years of marriage and a ton of bumps in the road, I can honestly say that marriage can be fun, exciting and deeply fulfilling. And it happens by simple, intentional actions. Here are some of my favorite ideas for having more fun in your relationship.

Go sledding. Just the two of you. Or invite [...]

How to Date Your Spouse

Two days ago, Ian and I celebrated our 9th anniversary. After the craziness that has been our last month of life, we were ready to spend some fun time alone together. Thankfully, my mom graciously agree to take our kids for a few hours so we could go out.

Mmmm, he's gorgeous. There's a surprising [...]

The Muir House

Hello and welcome Muir House Tour readers! This is the third stop on the tour. You can find the previous posts here and here. For more information on the rest of the book responses, click either picture in the post.

Today’s post is a review/response for The Muir House, as a part of Mary DeMuth’s project, [...]

Our Frugal Anniversary Plan and an Exciting New Project

Next week, on November 16th, Ian and I celebrate nine years of marriage. It’s been a tumultuous love story, that’s for sure. And there have been times when I’ve just wanted to walk away.

But now, God is working. He’s redeeming the messes we’ve made. And I’m pretty excited to see where this is going.

For the [...]

Intentional Thanksgiving: How to Make the Holiday More Meaningful

Being more intentional means a lot of things for us. It means making wise decisions about how we make and spend money. Being intentional means that we are mindful of the waste we create, which is why we strive to reduce it. Our focus on intentionality reaches into our relationships, strengthening the ones we have [...]

How to Get Your Spouse on Board With Your New Diet

“You know, you really shouldn’t eat that.” I said to Ian as he chewed on the gooey, homemade cinnamon roll my mom sent home with him.

His response was an eye roll and a defiant bite that left nothing but cream cheese frosting on his fingers. I glowered and walked away, muttering about sugar and insulin-resistance.

Since [...]

To Train Up a Mother

To say that parenting is challenging would be the understatement of the year. It’s hard; physically and emotionally exhausting. And, to make it even harder, there are about 1001 books out there that will tell you exactly what methods you need to follow to bring about well-functioning adults.

I’ve read many of these parenting books, from [...]

Tough Love

My cell phone dinged in my purse – a text message had just come through. I fished it out and opened the message. It was from Ian and simply said:

I decide to love you.

I cried. Our marriage, nearly destroyed by an affair, was a loveless partnership of convenience. We’d both hurt each other terribly over [...]