Posts Tagged ‘parenting’
Attachment Style and Marriage
Our earliest experiences of love and care profoundly influence what we each bring into our marriage. Attachment Theory illuminates how. As infants, we are completely dependent on our parents for basic physical needs like food and clothing. We also rely on them to provide affection, stimulation and soothing of distress. Research shows that the rapid…
Read MoreFinding 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 kids to heaven – parenting is about helping you get there! When we first heard them say this it stopped us in our tracks. Mike and Lisa go on to…
Read MoreThe Family Models Synodality
Only two of our five children, now adults, still reside with us. As resident adults, we respect their right to make decisions about their personal life, but we also impose some house rules. For example, we require them to communicate about their movements, tidy their rooms, do their own laundry, and participate in the preparation…
Read MoreTIME – The Currency of Relationships
There’s an old adage in the world of parenting advice: Kids spell LOVE as T.I.M.E. Kids don’t need things nearly much as they need a parent’s attention and availability. It’s a classic mistake that we make all too often; we give them stuff we’ve bought instead of the thing they most need from us –…
Read MoreThe Stick Kit
It’s not always easy to stick together! When relationships come under stress, its tempting to give up, give in or walk away. Whether its a marriage or parent-child relationship, you can find the support you need to transform your relationships into thriving, healthy interactions at The Stick Kit – online, anytime, anywhere. Here, Philipa Caulfield, project…
Read MoreAbstinence
It’s easy for parents to despair of teaching their kids abstinence. According to the Alan Guttmacher Institute (the research arm of Planned Parenthood), 70% of teens will have had vaginal intercourse by the time they are 19 and the average age of teens’ first sexual encounter is…
Read MoreThe Grandfather Clause
Tom and Gina just had their first child, a baby boy named Christopher. Both Tom and Gina’s parents were overjoyed. In particular, Karen, Gina’s mom, was especially excited because it was her first grandchild. She knew it would be an adjustment for Tom and her daughter, so she…
Read MoreWhen Desires Don’t Match
When couples marry they rightly expect that there will be a willing participation in a shared life together across a range of activities including sexual intimacy, intimate conversation and parenting for example. But what happens when there is a difference in the desire for the amount or style of one or more of these activities?…
Read MoreMy Many Marriages
We all understand that our marriages go through their ups and downs, but we often don’t appreciate that they also go through fundamental changes over the years. We have come to realise that we have actually had several marriages already in our 26 years together. For example, there was the ‘newlywed marriage’ where we were…
Read MoreTwo of Us: My Children
Reflect Separately, say the prayer and spend some time reflecting on the questions. Write some notes and then share your answers more fully with your spouse. Prayer I can never thank You enough for giving us our children. There is no greater gift that You could give to anyone. How much You trust…
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