The average home has tens of thousands of dollars in debt, causing post holiday financial stresses that hurt marriages. If you want to sink your financial ship, start by completely ignoring your current obligations and keep adding on. No need to draw a line in the sand that says “we stop borrowing now.” You can also sink your ship by just getting another credit card and go shopping. Of course, no one wants to fail...

As one year ends and another begins, I’ve spent some time looking at which of my blogs in 2013 readers enjoyed the most. Many really liked the ones on parenting.  So, I decided to compile a list of the top parenting blogs from 2013 and share them with you.  First, thousands enjoyed the blog, “8 Things Every Father Must Teach His Son.”  “7 Notes You Should Write to Your Children” was really popular too. Our readers...

On my blog, I focus a lot on providing practical solutions to people’s deepest marital problems.  With the year coming to a close, I looked through the marriage blogs I wrote, pulled out the most popular ones, and put them into a short list for you.  Tens of thousands of readers consumed “10 Things Wives Want to Hear from their Husbands” and its counterpart, “10 Things Husbands Want to Hear from their Wives.” ...

Sound familiar? For many of us, it’s easier to give than to receive. We just aren’t comfortable accepting gifts or gestures of appreciation. So, to deflect the attention, we say things like, “You didn’t have to do that…” or “You shouldn’t have spent so much money on me.” And even though our intentions might be humble ones, our actions belittle the generosity of the giver. So the next time you’re on the receiving...

When you care for a military family, and include them in your holiday plans, that’s one way to serve your country. Sharing your holiday meal with a military family who has someone overseas would be a blessing… for both the family and their deployed soldier. Or consider hosting a single soldier who’s based at a military installation near you… someone who may be lonely, and a long way from home.  Remember the...

Born in an obscure village to a peasant woman. He worked as a carpenter until he was thirty. Then for three years he was an itinerant preacher.  He never wrote a book or held office.  He did none of the things that usually accompany greatness. While still a young man, popular opinion turned against him… he was nailed to a cross, died, but rose again. Twenty centuries later, he is still the central figure for much...

Here’s what I mean.  When we get married it seems like the niceties of dating go out the window.  She stops shaving her legs every night and he stops covering his mouth when he belches—the whole neighborhood can hear him.  Now sure, it’s great to be comfortable with our spouse, but we still need to work at keeping the magic alive.  So as you’re going through your daily routine, think back to the nice things you...