• Date Night

    No Prep Date Night Ideas

    So. Date nights are really fun. And they really help relationships stay close. I love them. Buuuut. Are you tired sometimes? Yes, I am! Too busy to plan a date out? Yes! That’s me. Do you sometimes want to chill? Can I squeeze another yes in here? All the yeses! And, sometimes, you may not have the extra money. Or, what about if you have young kids? That makes it really hard. There is an easier way to have all the fun but avoid the other stuff. I have date night ideas for you! OK, I’m going to take a side trip. Bear with me. If you don’t know, my…

  • Relationships Take Work

    Just Respect

    I kinda fancy myself as being someone who knows a little something about marriage. I think it’s because it’s something I want to know about.  So I study people, I ask questions and I read a lot of books. And, over the years we have counseled several people so I’ve learned from the inside the ways people can get off track and the ways they can turn it back around. That’s a beautiful thing, let me tell you. There really isn’t much that can’t be turned around if both really, really want it. It’s gotten to the point that when I read a book on marriage, there’s not much there…

  • Life Advice

    Put Money In Its Place

    PT Barnum wrote a book called The Art of Money Getting. It’s about making and keeping money. I could never be author of that book. Frankly, I’m clueless. We don’t have an app on our phone with stock market numbers, and we don’t have a broker. We have a 401K, but don’t ask me how it’s doing or even how much money we have in it. I use coupons only if they fall out of my purse in the checkout line.  Money’s a necessary thing in this world we live in, but it’s not that important to us. A reader recently asked me to write about finances. This request is a…

  • Relationship Preparation

    Fools Rush In

    There’s an old song I love called “Fools Rush In.” The first line is “Wise men say only fools rush in.”  The rest of the song is nothing but One. Big. But. So, I’m gonna stop there.  (But if you don’t know the song, click the link! It’s so romantic…Ahem. OK, not now. I’m trying to make a point here.) There’s a reason why a wise man would say not to rush into a marriage. He knows a few things. We should listen because after all it’s been established that he’s wise. If Elvis said it (he recorded one of the first versions of this song), it has to be…