Blog
Practical wisdom, faith-filled insights, and real-world relationship advice for couples at every stage. Our blog offers practical tools and Catholic perspectives to help you love smarter. Explore topics including communication, fertility, forgiveness, spirituality, parenting, and more — authored by Francine & Byron Pirola and other guest contributers.
The Dating Recession
We recently spent some extended time with a group of young adult singles. Dating came up repeatedly in our conversations, and much of what we…
Undoing the Knots is Easier than you Think
September 28 marks the feast of Mary Undoer of Knots. The devotion is over 300 years old and is based on a Baroque painting by…
The Mental Load is an Equal Opportunity Frustration
The ‘mental load’ is trending online as a woman’s burden. But if we only count tasks and time, we miss half the story –…
Myths about Arguments
When it comes to marriage and relationship, there are a lot of myths out there. Here are five of the most common. Myth 1: Good…
Made for Greatness: Why the World Needs Strong Men
Rediscovering fatherhood, courage and tenderness as two sides of the same masculine coin. There’s a quiet suspicion floating around our culture that masculinity itself might…
Married Saints: There’s Hope for Us Yet!
As Catholics, it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that the REALLY holy people are only religious celibates. Afterall, most of the canonized…
The Conversation No Couple Wants to Have (But Needs To)
Why “until death do us part” deserves more than a passing thought on our wedding day Standing at the altar, we made a promise that…
Finding Our Way to Heaven
We’ve been listening to Mike and Alicia Hernon’s podcast called Messy Families. One of their recurring messages for parents is: stop worrying about getting your…
When a Pregnancy Ends Too Soon
Content warning: miscarriage / pregnancy loss Miscarriage is one of the most common – and most hidden – losses in our communities. How we respond to grieving couples…
Natural Fertility – Hey What?
Couples in the world are adopting Fertility Awareness Methods (FAMs – what used to be called Natural Family Planning) with new vigour as they access…
The Gift We’d Rather Not Receive
What the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly can teach every marriage about frailty. Most of us are far more comfortable giving help than…
Are we outliving marriage?
We’ve heard it said many times – you probably have as well – it goes like this. “People live so much longer these days, it’s…
Three Couple Saints Still Teaching Us How to Love
The Church gives us a calendar full of saints, and this July it hands us three married pairs worth knowing. Each marriage speaks to something…
Sleeping our way to a better marriage
Sleep deprivation is a recognised means of torture. But what about when the cause is one of our children? In this post we explore how…
Newly Married and Already at Risk
Why do some marriages unravel within a decade? We have a personal stake in the question – three of our own children are newly…