Hailey's Helpful Hints

BE A 'REAL' FRIEND. It's that time of the day - overnight guests are gone. lunch mess is cleaned up. boys are napping - and it's time to rally together an inspirational blog post for y'all before it's off to swim. When I sat down to the computer, I myself needed inspiration and thanks to Facebook, an article just popped into my news feed that is a great reminder for the week. So thanks to my "real" friend Jodi, here is a blog post from Marc & Angel's Hack Life  on what it means to be a real friend (and a good partner) --- As we grow, we realize it becomes less important to have more friends and more important to have real ones. {Isn't that the truth? Something I feel I didn't really grasp until I hit my 30's. What a breath of fresh air.} Remember, life is kind of like a party. You invite a lot of people, some leave early, some stay all night, some laugh with you, some laugh at you, and some show up really late. But in the end, af...

I've always wondered why when you get married, you're not considered "dating" anymore. You still like them, right? You do enjoy spending time with them, right? Isn't that what dating is?? According to Wikipedia, dating " refers to the act of meeting and engaging in some mutually agreed upon social activity in public, together, as a couple." If that's the case, you're still dating. And just like when you were in the early lovey dovey courtship stages  - pre kids and chaos - you should make dating your spouse a priority. But dating takes work. It means planning and taking time away from the whirlwind of appointments, kids and housework. Sadly, most relationships let their activities take precedence and as an effect, relationships aren't being cultivated and nurtured like they should. Relationship expert and marriage counselor, Michele Weiner-Davis cites kids as being a major reason for the romantic disconnect that may exist between a couple, ...

PLAN A DATE NIGHT WITH YOUR SIGNIFICANT OTHER. Does going out on a date sound inviting, but the reality of actually doing it is overwhelming? Are you so disconnected from your spouse that you fear you'll have nothing to talk about? Finding a reliable sitter isn't always easy, and paying for a sitter can be even more painful. Plus, after dealing with work and kids all day, who has the energy to stay up late enough to go out? Alright that's it, stop right there! When Dave and I got married we made a pact that our relationship is #1 no matter what. Yes, we love our children and they will always be a top priority but they come second to our marriage. It always kills me when I hear people say they haven't gone out with their spouse in months. Months??? Are you kidding. I'd kill myself. Dave and I are very intentional about going out once per week without kids. Usually Saturday night. Whether we have plans or not. I always get asked, "what do you guys go do?" So...