craysymom

The Family that Works Together

You Get What You Give

Work” by John Gottman, PHD. I highly recommend that you read it yourself, but the principles that he outlines in the book are 1 Enhance Your Love Maps, 2 Nurture your Fondness and Admiration, 3 Turn Toward Each Other Instead of Away, 4 Let Your Partner Influence You, 5 Solve Your Solvable Problems, 6 OvercomeContinue reading “You Get What You Give”

A Perpetual Problem

According to a marriage expert John Gottman 69% of all problems in marriage are perpetual. What is the difference between perpetual non-perpetual problems? Perpetual problems are problems that are going to arise over and over again for many years or even the course of the whole marriage. These usually have to do with personality traitContinue reading “A Perpetual Problem”

To Escalate or Deescalate?

In most marriages there will occasionally be times when you find yourself bickering over things that don’t matter. You may wonder to yourself, why are we even arguing? Sometimes these arguments will pop up out of the blue or sometimes you’ll find yourself arguing all day. The question is whether there is a way toContinue reading “To Escalate or Deescalate?”

Asking for Love

It may come as a surprise to some that in most marriages we and our spouses are asking our partners to show that they love us multiple times a day. You may think, I don’t remember asking my spouse to prove their love to me recently? While it’s unlikely that you said those words toContinue reading “Asking for Love”

Talking to our Children about Sex

All parents dread it, “the talk”, “the birds and the bees”, and anything else we use to allude to talking to our children about sex and sexuality. A lot of parents will either avoid talking about it and just hope for the best or decide on an arbitrary date to explain everything about sex allContinue reading “Talking to our Children about Sex”

Harsh Punishment Just Doesn’t Work

Discipline. It’s one of the most widely debated parenting topics. On one extreme you have those who don’t believe much in any discipline at all and will simply talk to their children about how they are being disobedient without laying down any consequences, on the other extreme you have those who believe that children shouldContinue reading “Harsh Punishment Just Doesn’t Work”

Parent to Your Child

Every child is created equal, but they are not created the same. As parents a lot of heart ache and trouble can be avoided if we follow a few key principles out lined in the book The 10 Basic Principles of Good Parenting (Steinburg, 2005). Keep pace with your child’s development, adjust your parenting toContinue reading “Parent to Your Child”

Closeness Amidst Change

Remember the first time you met your spouse? Where were you at? What drew you to them? How did they make you feel? At the beginning of your relationship you and your partner likely spent hours and hours just talking to each other. You probably got to know them, their thoughts, and all their deepestContinue reading “Closeness Amidst Change”

Best Friend or Spouse?

What are the most important components for making a relationship last? A lot of people would say communication, passion, or trust. Would you also add friendship to that list? Surprisingly a strong friendship between husband and wife can overcome a lot of marital difficulties that most other things can’t. In fact, it is one ofContinue reading “Best Friend or Spouse?”