Guest post by Gina of GinaMPoirier.com “We’re like two ships passing in the night…” It’s a phrase I hear surprisingly often when couples are talking about their interactions with one another. In other words, you coexist around each other. When it comes down to it, there’s not much space or even desire for intimacy. You're not "in the mood." Does it describe your marriage?   It’s easy to coexist when you life is full, whether with babies and sleep deprivation or older kids and their accompanying activity schedules. You and your spouse might even make a pretty good team. But what about not too far down the road (it’s really not), when your kids are grown, and it’s just you and your man, night after night? The divorce rate for empty nesters has been rising learn more...

Sex is bad, and should be avoided at all costs. Or at least, that's the message I got growing up. Not from my parents, mind you, but from the church I grew up in. (Just one of many lies Christian women believe about sex I picked up along the way) As teenagers, we were expected to keep clear of the boys so we wouldn't be tempted (or tempt them!), and I still remember the all-girl's overnighter I went to with my best friend where we wrote love letters to our future husbands, promising we'd save ourselves just for them. After all, no one wants a girl that's too "loose." At least, none of the good Christian guys would anyways. That's just in poor taste.   It all sounded good in theory. Yes, Christian women (and men) should be modest (though I'd argue that our definition learn more...

Did your parents teach you about sex when you were growing up? Did they do a good job? Or did you have to learn most of what you know at school, at church, on the playground, or even in books or on websites once you were older? It's funny, for a culture where sex is so prevalent (it's hard to watch a show that doesn't include or at least reference it--even on so-called "family" channels), we really don't talk about sex the way we should. It's all jokes and references--not really the information that Christian women need to know. And as a result, there are a LOT of misconceptions about what sex is, what it's for, and what it does to us spiritually and emotionally -- even among Christian women who are old enough to know better! Personally, I think my mom did a pretty good job of learn more...

Guest Post by Gina of GinaMPoirier.com Sometimes I feel like the best lessons learned in marriage come out of the most heated arguments. A couple of years ago, when my youngest was a toddler, I went out to do some Christmas shopping. My husband stayed home with the kids. It was nice to have a productive afternoon by myself…until I discovered when I came home that it was an hour past my baby’s naptime. She was still toddling around, wide-awake. I was livid. Three kids in, and my husband wasn’t aware that a small child needs an afternoon snooze? The whole rest of the day would be thrown off! We had a bit of a bump over our (lack of) communication.   Unfortunately, it wasn’t the first or last time I’ve been resentful because I expected my husband to do something that he learn more...

Communication has never been a strength in my marriage.  Sure, we're working on it. And it's getting a LOT better. But it isn't something that comes naturally, by any means. Especially for me. And while I'm sure there are some husbands out there who would LOVE for their wives to stop talking so much 😉, I can assure you that when one or both spouses actually do stop talking, it's not nearly as much fun as it sounds. Not talking leads to distance, miscommunication, misunderstanding and plenty of hurt feelings. Because when one of you doesn't share how you're truly feeling, the other is left to guess, assume or fill in the blanks themselves. And you don't always fill in the blanks correctly...   In Four Marriage Communication Skills that Prevent Fights, Gina shares four learn more...

Is your husband the spiritual leader of your home? Would you like him to be? While some women really struggle with submitting to their husbands, others would happily follow their husband's leadership -- if only their husband would lead! Unfortunately, however, not all men automatically step up to that role on their own. If you'd like your husband to be more of a spiritual leader in your home, here are six things you can try.    *Note: This article assumes that your husband is, in fact, a Christian. If your husband isn't a Christian, you may want to check out this article instead: Unequally Yoked Marriage? Here's What to Do When Your Spouse Isn't a Believer     1. Identify and Examine Your Expectations for Spiritual Leadership   First things first. Before you can learn more...