Posts Tagged ‘communication’
After the Fight – Making Up
When you’ve had a falling out or feel distance between you, how do you come back together and reconcile? The following might help.
Changing Your Partner – and Yourself
They say that when a man marries a woman, he thinks, “She’s the one I’ve been waiting for. She’ll never change.” – and she always does. And a woman looks at her man, and thinks, “He just needs a little work; after we’re married, I’ll help him change” – and he never does.
Four Elements of Conflict Resolution
Having a successful marriage means learning some skills that differ from the skills you need for most other pieces of life. You are in the business of building, maintaining, and protecting a relationship.
Hooked on Football
Our first home, an old ranch house, needed remodeling from the doorstops to the ceiling trim. We decided to do the job ourselves. Friends warned us of the dangers ahead. “The quickest way to divorce court is to hang wallpaper together.” “It was the biggest fight we ever had.” “I love my wife, but I [...]
The Surprise
His plane was just taking off for a week long meeting in San Francisco when my husband’s secretary called me. She wanted to know who our family photographer was so that she could get a professional photo of my husband. A legal journal would be covering the news about his appointment as president of a national organization. I was stunned. What presidency, I asked?
Fist Fighting
I’ll never forget the look on my Dad’s face the first time he saw my husband, Joe, raise his fist at me.
Grade Your Marriage
Marriage is not a test that you either pass or fail. It’s an ongoing process of learning about each other and how to accommodate differences so that both of you can feel satisfied and grow in love for each other. Marriage is also not a competition in which one person wins at the expense of [...]
What Makes Marriage Work
Communication What is the one indispensable ingredient for making marriages work? Family life educators usually answer: communication. This is good news, because effective communication can be learned. Skills such as active listening, using “I” statements, paying attention to my feelings and those of my spouse, and learning tips for “fighting fair” make marriage easier. Some [...]
Must-Have Conversations
As a dating or engaged couple, conversation probably comes easily. The two of you enjoy talking about just anything. Just about anything that is, except ugly disagreements. It doesn’t change much in marriage except there are more things to disagree about. You can’t run away from prickly conversations – for long. If anything, marriage accentuates [...]
For Every Marriage
Wherever you may be—dating, engaged, newlywed, in a mature marriage, or empty nesters—your relationship can benefit from a little expert advice. It’s too big a puzzle to put together from scratch. Don’t go it alone. We’re here to help make married life easier, more meaningful and enjoyable. We’re here to help make married life easier, [...]
Marriage in the News February 2009
World meeting of families held in Mexico City; Marriage initiative in the Tucson Diocese: Listening sessions; The Marriage Checkup: Catching problems early; Marital happiness after a spouse develops a physical disability; Pope Benedict XVI on the new communications media at home.
