EveryDay Inspiration

To keep motivated for exercising/healthy eating I started taping
(eventually I will do something cuter) up quotes(on my mirror in our bathroom)
I would want to see everyday to help me be better. 

I found a lot of these on pinterest and just typed them up.

I rephrased this question a bit. You can go here for the printable.

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PosterBoard Letters

I made this sweet message for my hubby yesterday for our anniversary.

[I found the posterboard at the DollarTree Dollar store for $0.50 each.
That's better than Walmart's price. I always love a Great deal!]
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Books to Have in Your Collection!

I had a gift card and used it to buy these wonderful relationship books. They have fun quotes, wonderful relationship basics and examples of how to apply them. Its nice to have extra information to keep the love going.
Book 1: "The 100 Simple Secrets of Great Relationships" By David Niven

Book 2: "What Happy Couples Do" By Carol J. Bruess, & Anna D.H. Kudak Pin It

Date Night on a Budget

I hosted a poll this month about DATE NIGHTS because, I don't know about you, but I was curious to see how often the average married couple go on weekly date nights. Just curious! I love and cherish date nights with my husband, and we usually never miss doing something once/week. But lately we've not been able to afford to go "out" as often, and I noticed from the poll that many of us are experiencing that same issue, (which is no surprise with the way the economy has been.) I know that (for my marriage) date nights and/or "alone-times" are absolutely necessary for us for a super strong & happy marriage. So if we don't have babysitter and dinner/movie $$ in our budget, it's time to get CREATIVE!!

That's why I am so glad to have found Cher, over at

Cher has tons of awesome, creative date night ideas for those of us on a budget!! I love one of her great posts about dating in marriage, amongst many others. She and Heather think alike with their idea-keeping books!


Also, my friend Jo (young mom/wife) shared with me a great idea that she and her husband do for date nights on a budget (in her words)...
"My husband and I are in a 'co-op' with three other couples. Each couple takes all the kids for one Friday night a month and then we have the other three nights to go out. No one in our group leaves more than two kids (some of us with newborns take our babies) and rarely does it work out that ALL the kids are there due to other conflicts. It might not work out for larger families. But we love it, and the kids love it to. They look forward to it all week."
Thanks for the great inspiration, Jo! Pin It

Date Night Polls

February 2010

My man and I go on date nights without the kids:
(142 votes)

Every Week- 48 (33%)
Once/Month- 40 (28%)
Rarely Ever- 54 (38%)


We don't get out alone much because: (66 votes)

No Babysitter- 19 (27%)
Afraid to leave kids w/ a sitter- 10 (15%)
Can't afford it right now!- 27 (40%)
Too busy- 7 (10%)
All of above- 4 (6%)
Are you kidding me?...
We ♥ date night!!- 18 (27%)

Interesting results! Please feel free to share your thoughts and feelings about this poll. We love your honesty in these annonymous polls, and it's so fun/interesting to hear some of the stories behind the votes!! Remember that if you share, please keep it positive and uplifting! ♥ Pin It

{You + Me} = Date Night

I absolutely LOVE going on dates with my hubby. I love to get all dolled up (wearing white pants even)and feel like a WOMAN and not a MOM for a night. It truely reminds me often why I fell in love with him. Its just us and we can feel/act like teenagers. How FUN is that! To prevent us from getting into a rut of going to "dinner and a movie" I decided to make a Binder of Ideas.



I organized the ideas into categories with some inspiration and more inspiration. To alleviate the burden of one of us always planning every Friday night date I've broken it down week to week.

Week {1} Temple

Week {2} Heather's Choice

Week {3} Temple

Week {4} Guillermo's Choice

Week{5} At Home

The Inside. . .

I just cut some paper to staple over the existing tabs.


The deocrated dividers. Section labels are: Babysitter Information, Fun Ways to Ask, Fun with Couples, Fun ways Romantically, & Fun Indoors & Out.


These are a couple of books I have for added ideas. They are wonderful.

I believe this is {one} of the most important things you can do in your marriage. I always try to remind myself that I want to know him when I'm old & gray.

Good Luck in your Dating Adventures!

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AAA for Husbands

In no particular order, here is what the AAA stands for (as learned in a marriage class by Carleen T):
Admiration
Appreciation
Affection
A good quote about marriage is from Pres. Gordon B. Hinkley... "I am satisfied that a happy marriage is not so much a matter of romance as it is an anxious concern for the comfort and well being of one's companion."

I agree with this quote! We ALL have needs. I know I do, and I feel so blessed and grateful to have a husband who desires to fulfill my needs, and who is truly "concerned for [my] comfort and well being". He is an amazing man!

Husbands have many needs in marriage as well, many of the same and some a little different. In my world, we understand that a man has three main responsibilities as a husband and father, in which I refer to as the THREE P's:
Preside, Provide and Protect.

As a wife and mother I am responsible for nurturing my husband and children. So I like to think of the THREE A's as a way to nurture the THREE P's...

Note: I'm no expert on being the perfect wife, but I sure love to learn ways I can be the best wife for my awesome husband!

1. Husbands need to feel Admired. This, to me, means to honor him and his manhood. To NOT be his "mother" (which, come on ladies, admit it. We've all done that.) We are his "help-meet" (as quoted in Genesis 2:18), which means that we are to lift, sustain and support him as a leader (presider) in our home.

2. Husbands need to feel Appreciated. We need to let him know by our words and actions that we appreciate and respect him in all he does, and NOT criticise him for his weaknesses!!

3. Husbands need Affection. We need to allow ourselves to be protected by him. He needs physical touch. This is sometimes the hardest one for me after being climbed on by kids all day long. But my husband really appreciates a hug and a kiss once in a while to know that I care. Of course, we all know how our husbands need that "physical" part of marriage... Sheesh! (But giving of ourselves in that way is truly a gift to them and will strengthen a marriage like no other... especially if we can find a way to enjoy it too! Just my quick 2-cents. hehe.)

Here is a little something that I started a few years ago on Valentine's day to show my husband how much I love and appreciate him...
I randomly add to it so he always knows how much those little things he does really mean to me. It is not his love language, but it is mine, and my way of expressing little thoughts of appreciation to him. The best part? It really helps me focus on my husband's good qualities and realize why I love him so much. Pin It

"Love Notes" Notebook

When my husband and I were dating we wrote each other little notes all the time. Now{12 years of marriage and 4 kids later} it hasn't happened as often so I decided to make a "Love Notes" Notebook.

I just bought a simple notebook from the dollar store and attached a pen. I love that its all in one book and I don't have to worry about the stress of filing little papers. I will write a note and then leave it on his bathroom counter and then he writes in it & returns it to my counter. It sometimes takes him a little longer to write back because this is not his love language but I'm thankful my wonderful husband indulges me.

This has been a great addition to helping our love grow within our marriage. I love these little, simple things that can have such a great impact for the GOOD.

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♥ LOVE YOUR SPOUSE ♥

I've known about this fun website since December, but I haven't had a chance (until today) to sit down and read through it much. They are 3 gals from my town who take the time to research the web for really fun, wonderful ideas (along with ideas of their own) and share them with us. I found some great Valentine ideas on How Does She for HUSBANDS!!

Some of my faves are:
Shower Love Notes
Stay In Love, Keep Dating
Valentine Cards for Husbands
For Him gift ideas

Through HowDoesShe I also found this great site ! Can't wait to dig through this one for some great romance ideas too!! Pin It

Better Than _ _ _ Cake & Strengthening Marriage

Do I DARE say the word??... Do you have a husband? If so, then _ _ _ is a beautiful, clean, sacred, and wonderful word!! This cake is wonderful too, but never "better" than _ _ _, especially in marriage! I am not saying this because it's one of my hobbies or anything of the sort... actually, it's rarely on my mind... the cake? Yes... _ _ _? NO!
(recipe at end of post)

Most of the time I would say that I could live without _ _ _. But there ARE those that cannot. And maybe YOU are one of those (you lucky girl). But for a guy, _ _ _ is more important than we women could ever realize, especially in their marriage!
That is why I want to introduce you (again) to my biggest inspiration for strengthening my own marriage... Her name is Laura Brotherson, author of the best book ever- "And They Were Not Ashamed". Do you have this book? If not I highly recommend it, whether you have a strong marriage or not!

I've met Laura personally (after reading her book) and we have become friends. She lives in my town and is an amazing person. She is passionate about teaching other women (and men) how to strengthen their marriages through _ _ _ual intimacy.

Now ladies, if you struggle with this in your marriage.... Please take my advice and GET OVER to Laura's website right now!!! SAVE your marriage! "Fire-proof" it! Strengthen it NOW in time for Valentine's Day! ♥ ♥ Laura has the "recipe" for this. And YOU will benefit greatly as well as your husband. (We all know that!)

**I want you know that I am not getting any kind of "kick-back" or freebies from Laura B for posting her info, nor am I doing it because she's a friend. I am simply sharing this because I am a tried and true believer and I know how "s_ _ _" can bring the magic back into any marriage.
DON'T SETTLE FOR THE CAKE. IT'S NOT BETTER!! (Well unless you promise to have BOTH!) {{winks}} Here's my recipe...

Cake:
1 yellow cake mix
1 small pkg instant chocolate pudding
2 c water
2 eggs
-Bake above ingredients at 350 for about 25 min. Do not overbake! Let cake cool completely.

Frosting:
1 cube butter (melted & cooled)
1 c (heaping) powdered sugar
1 T water
-Mix above, then fold in
8oz tub Cool Whip

-Sprinkle 3 Heath candybars (crushed up) over cake. MMmmmmm! BUT... not better! :o)

**UPDATE: I had to take the "3-letter word" out of this post so that search engines don't bring in the wrong kind of people. We're just not "in Kansas anymore" these days!! A friend of mine told me that she can no longer access this blog from work (and I think it's because I have that certain word in a post). That's good! Shows the internet protection programs are working!! :o) Pin It

My Town- LifeStar

I'm thrilled about a new program that is coming to my town this month. It's called the LifeStar Network, and it's designed to help couples struggling with a spouse that is addicted to pornography. I am extremely grateful that pornography is not an issue in my marriage, but I know of too many marriages and souls that are being destroyed by this uncomprehendable addiction. I personally know the clinical director of this program here in Meridian, ID- Shirley Henderson with Cherry Lane Counseling; and she seems greatly optomistic that it will help many poeple in our area.

If you or someone you love is in need of something like this, you can email Shirley at cherriesh@earthlink.net or call 887-1911 for more info.

In fact if you ever need a therapist for anything, I highly recommend Shirley. And anyone else associated with her. She is the best in town in my opinion. I've been a client of hers in the past (that's how I met her). Pin It

Take Time for Romance

In lew of Valentine's day coming up, this is the perfect time to spice things up with your man! I found this website a year or 2 ago while looking for some creative Valentine's Day ideas to do for my man. I actually have some of this guy's eBooks and have really enjoyed them. I love this book pictured below. (Just click on the book to find out more.)

I personally know that one of the biggest tools to keeping your marriage strong and alive, amidst all the stresses we face, is to keep the flame burning with regular physical intimacy and date nights. Life, careers and children can keep us so busy that we forget to kindle the fire with our spouse. Michael Webb, "The Romantic" is so creative and has a tons of fantastic ideas of how we can strengthen our relationship with our spouse. I'm glad I found him.

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Preserving Marriage in Arizona!

If you live in Arizona, it's very important to get to the polls on Tuesday and stand up to preserve marriage!! Vote YES on Prop 102 in Arizona!! Pin It

Preserving the Institution of Marriage

ProtectMarriage.com Pin It

Friday Faves - Date Night Dinner

Keeping on the marriage subject, I thought I'd post about my favorite date-night with my man. I totally agree with Cathy's comment on my last post about weekly date nights- alone together, no kids alowed. Very important! I always look forward to my date nights alone with Rod.

So what is YOUR favorite thing to do on a date night with your man?? My all-time MOST fave thing to do on a date night is going out for dinner. What woman doesn't love being served a warm, delicious meal to eat- (un-interrupted), and be cleaned up after? And not only the eating part, but being alone with your man to actually talk without little people pulling at your apron-strings. We also love to go out to eat with other couples, and of course girls nights out!!

Our top 2 favorite restaurants to go on a date night are:


Texas Road House- a steak house. They seriously have the best ribs, rolls, and dinner salads we've ever had. And the rolls are not only "to-die-for", they are also complimentary and keep coming if you want more. I could eat a whole basket of them with the cinnamon butter that comes with it, and call it dessert!
Oh, and Texas Roadhouse steak seasoning is the best! You can buy a container of it for $3 there.
Also, they sponsor the best golf tournament every year. Rod never misses one of their tournies. He actually won first place at it this year, a couple weeks ago!! He came home with a huge trophy, some great prizes and a goody bag from the restaurant.


On the Border- a Tex-Mex type of place. They have the best chips and salsa! I love their 3-Sauce Chicken Fajita Burrito. But everything on their menu is "to-die-for"!!

What is your favorite date-night or girls-night restaurant??? Pin It

A Thought for Thursday- Marriage

Since my husband and I are about to celebrate our 11th wedding anniversary (on Aug 16th), my thoughts for Thursday are about marriage.

On my MSN browser this week were some marriage tips that I agree with 100%. There were two different articles: 8 Marriage Ruts and What Happy Couples Know. I enjoyed reading them, and I hope you do too.

My marriage is not perfect by any means and I'm no expert on the subject, but with one word I can tell you mine and my husband's biggest success secret in keeping our marriage strong and healthy.

~SELF-LESS-NESS~

We took a marriage class when we first got married (at our own free will), and the first lesson was what stuck with me the most. The instructor had us all tell him what things cause divorce. We ended up with a big list on the board, a few of which were money problems, poor communication, infidelity, in-laws, and so on. When we were done listing these things, the instructor drew a big circle around the list and at the bottom wrote in big letters the word "SELFISHNESS". Doesn't it make perfect sense that selfishness is the root of all of these causes of divorce?? Self-centeredness is a natural human feeling. Most of us were born with it, but as we grew up and matured, we have learned to combat it in the real world.

Then we get married and we have a partner that we are working with as a team. "ME" becomes "WE" and WE have a future full of dreams, responsibilities, and family. WE must be thinking of "HE" (and visa-versa), to continue to build a strong WE.

Whenever Rod and I have rough days in our marriage, I always ask myself... "Am I being selfish?" (And sometimes even "Is HE being selfish? YES!") {{giggle}} The answer is always YES! (It may be just one of us, and sometimes it's both.) But it is a dangerous, dark place to be for too long. Once you realize it, own up to it and SNAP OUT OF IT! It's okay to apologize and admit you are wrong! It's what creates humility in our character, and strength in our relationships. Reflect on your wedding day, or the day you brought a new baby into the world together, or something special he has done for just you.

Now think about HIS love language, and do something selfless for him- just for him. Then see what happens! When we serve one another, I guarantee we grow in love for them- real, unconditional love. And what goes around, comes around!

Now, go love your husband!!

What is your marriage strengthening secret?

(Please leave a comment or email me!)

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