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The one thing every guy should buy his wife at Victoria’s Secret

August 10, 2011 in Marriage with 5 Comments

J: A few weeks ago, I thought it would be an awesome idea to buy my wife something at Victoria’s Secret. For the uninitiated, this seems like it would be a lot of fun! If you’ve ever been shopping there, you know the reality is quite different!

From the moment I walked in, it was complete sensory overload: unreal amounts of pink everywhere, giant posters of supermodels and endless amounts of lingerie in varieties that I never even knew existed! I quickly realized that I was totally out of my element. To top it all off, I’m the only guy in the store and there are women from age 12-50 watching me out of the corner of their eye to make sure I’m not some creeper. Very awkward!

Luckily I had a plan before I ever even entered the store. Continue Reading…

Our Honeymoon Death Wish…

August 5, 2011 in Life, Marriage with 2 Comments

Jake and I have a theory: every good marriage begins with a near-death experience – okay, maybe not every good marriage but at least ours did! It happened just hours after we said “I do” and we will never forget it.
Continue Reading…

Love Gives Way

August 4, 2011 in Life, Marriage with 0 Comments

Our friend Andy Brophy of OneNine Images is doing something quite remarkable. We want to highlight it today and we hope you’ll pass it along to your friends as well. It really is quite amazing! I could go on but it’s better to just let Andy tell it in his own words: Continue Reading…

Take steps toward each other

August 3, 2011 in Marriage with 4 Comments

The longer Hannah and I are together and the busier life gets with work, kids, family, friends and everything else, I’m finding out how important it is for us to intentionally take steps toward each other. It doesn’t have to be a huge step. But just consistently taking those steps brings us back together after the busyness has pulled us apart. Continue Reading…

One of our favorite photos

August 1, 2011 in Home, Life, Marriage with 0 Comments

This has always been one of my favorite pictures of Hannah and I. It’s from our engagement and was taken in downtown Wilmington overlooking the Cape Fear River by Joseph McSpadden. I’ve always felt like it perfectly captured such a special moment in time for us. When Hannah added the photo to that frame, it was complete. Continue Reading…

A Personal Motto, Mantra, and Words to Live By

July 14, 2011 in Marriage, Parenting with 1 Comment

My sweet girlfriend came to me the other day wanting some advice about when to have kids. We debated and discussed. Pros and cons. Finances. Am I ready, am I not? This is what I said, be it from the Lord, or my own small mind, who knows…

Don’t make forever decisions based on today’s circumstances. Continue Reading…

Girls’ Night

July 11, 2011 in Marriage, Parenting with 6 Comments

Moms, do you take time for yourself away from your kids? I know we all talk about it. We occasionally sneak out after dinner and get a pedicure…maybe. We rarely get to the mall alone. We can only remember once, if we’re really lucky, a time that we got away for the weekend without a husband or a child. I know it’s hard. It’s near impossible. After living like that the first year of motherhood, some friends and I decided we’d had enough. We were losing each other. We couldn’t keep up with each other. We were not seeing each other regularly and because of that we were losing our connection, our community.

It had to stop.

And, by the grace of God, it did. Continue Reading…

Making your House a Home…the importance of aesthetics

July 5, 2011 in Marriage, Parenting with 4 Comments

So…I love to decorate. I’m not the world’s greatest designer, but I do have a knack for home design. Things I’m not good at…clean closets. But, design I can do. It’s something that I love and take pride in. It comes easily. It’s enjoyable. I’ve always got another project on my list waiting. Curtains to be sewn. New artwork ideas, or picture collages to be hung. I love knowing that my home is an extension of my style and personality.

On the flip side, I totally understand that home design is not every one’s passion. To some people, maybe you, it is tedious and frustrating. To some, they’ve never even thought about the fact that their home requires design at all. It’s not on their radar. Totally okay. But I’d like to offer my two cents. Continue Reading…

Catch-Up Time

June 28, 2011 in Marriage with 1 Comment

I’ve recently started working on a great habit I’m trying to develop. I call it “catch-up time.” Continue Reading…