So…{insert slightly awkward pause} you haven’t heard from me for a while. If I were your spouse this reality wouldn’t bode well for our marriage. But thank goodness I’m not.

What’s that? You say you didn’t notice. That’s ok, my feelings aren’t hurt. I know you have better things to do than sit around and wonder why I haven’t written lately. But I will tell you the Husband has been getting a little more attention from me these days, so is anyone complaining? Ok. Great. Then we’ll just pick up where we left off… thanks for sticking with me.

Over the last several months I’ve been pondering my long-term vision for LiveSimplyLove. I LOVE marriage and the platform this blog gives me to share what we’ve learned along this newlywed journey. But you see, we’re getting close to that THREE-YEAR-MARK. The one where everyone says you’re no longer newlyweds anymore.

I’m not sure I believe in arbitrary rules like “you can’t wear white pants after Labor Day” or “you’re only newlyweds until you have kids or hit 3 years.” But I must say we are settling into something that feels a little different to me.

I’ll sit down to write a Make-Up-Monday post only to remember we had a conflict-free weekend. {Trust me, this does NOT mean we are conflict free. Just that they are fewer, different, smaller, quieter than they were in year one.}

We’ll be cooking {or cleaning up} dinner together and I’ll realize that we’re BOTH in the kitchen with smiles on our faces, learning to “dance” around each other in the narrow space between the stove and the sink, and having conversations about our day…without a hint of irritation…not to mention we’re getting the job done faster.

And what’s probably even more encouraging is this sense of growing trust I have for this man. It’s so different than anything I’ve experienced in any other relationship and so much more than what I had with him even just a year ago.

It’s a gentle, calming, peaceful, knowing trust. Accompanied by the understanding that he is FOR me. That we are a team. That we are growing in oneness. And that we really do find joy in being together. Even when we have struggles and even when we disagree.

I don’t know who has changed more, him or me. Given our story and the fact that I’ve always believed we are SOOO different…I couldn’t help but find it funny when a friend remarked last week about my absence at our community group: “Todd was there so it felt like you were there, too. You two are just so much alike.”

What????

If you had told me that in 2007, I might have punched your lights out. {Or at least tried.}

But today I’m proud of the fact that we’re rubbing off on each other. And hopeful that it’s in all the best ways. Yes, we still struggle. We for sure are NOT perfect. But we’re finding our stride. We’re learning each other—and still eager to do so. We apologize quickly. We ask forgiveness. We’re sharing more and more about our individual thoughts, fears, hopes and dreams. And we’re growing closer as a result.

I don’t have a recipe for the perfect marriage. But a wise friend suggested to me a few weeks ago that if there were one, it just might be the time spent continuing to work on the relationship with the gusto and enthusiasm you had when you were preparing for marriage.  {And if you didn’t do much in the way of pre-marital counseling/classes, you might just use the analogy of wedding planning in its place!}

If I have to answer now, I’d say this sounds like a pretty good idea. That, and finding ways to really enjoy one another. Whatever they are, figure them out by studying your spouse and learning what makes him/her tick. And wash, rinse, repeat for the rest of your lives.

That’s my wisdom after 2.866 years of marriage.

Aren’t you glad I’m back.

What have you been discovering in your marriage lately?

© Editor for Live Simply Love, 2012. | Permalink | 10 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Communication, Contentment, Forgiveness, Lessons Learned, Trust

I mentioned on Facebook last week that conflict stinks! And I promised an update today—on Make-Up-Monday—so here you go, another glimpse into our not-so-perfect-but-worth-it marriage…

One morning last week I groggily came downstairs to find the Husband unloading a bunch of stuff from a drawer in our kitchen. It upset me immediately.

I felt like he’d been on a kick lately…relocating my shoes {twice} from near the front door to our bedroom closet, removing a rug by the back door…not big deal things, but things we’d talked about before and never really came to an agreement. Now he was taking action. And his next conquest was a disorganized kitchen drawer.

Just between you and me, I’ll admit I’m never going to win any awards for my organization skills. My system is more like “organized chaos.” An outsider wouldn’t know what to do with my piles. But I can almost always tell you where to look for whatever I might need. It’s crazy-making for people like the Husband {and several dear friends who have tried to help me “get organized” in the past}. I’m sentimental and hate to waste things while he easily makes quick decisions about what to throw away {almost everything} and what to keep {almost nothing—or at least that’s how it feels to someone like me}.

Moving us into the same home—now THAT’S recipe for disaster.

Even if we weren’t so different in our things-keeping/things-throwing style, the truth is we have a lot of stuff. We moved from a three-bedroom house, plus an office, to a two-bedroom condo. Despite having purged a lot prior to our move, we STILL have too much stuff for this place. I know it. And I know a lot of it is because of me.

On this particular morning I snapped out of my early-morning daze and pounced on him, which caused immediate shut-down.

My feelings at the time—seeing random, seldom-used kitchen items strewn across the dining room table at 6:30 a.m.—really had more to do with our lack of communication on this topic. No, we certainly don’t have to talk about every little thing he wants to move or change, but I was beginning to feel hurt by what seemed to be his irritation with my house-keeping skills.

Generally when we have conflict, the Husband is the first one to come around. He hates that feeling of separation that invades the normal closeness of our marriage. But not this time. He was frustrated. Confused. Not sure what to do next. And then he said it.

“I feel like I’m walking on eggshells all the time in this area. When we have these arguments it seems like the only resolution is to do things your way.”

Ouch.

Yes. He’s right. Kind of.

But mostly because I don’t have another solution. So sometimes the answer to the problem of not knowing what to do with all my/our stuff is to just ignore it. And that’s fine. With me.

Problem is—someone else lives here too. And it DOES bother him.

In the end, we were able to resolve pretty quickly. In about 20 minutes’ time from the moment I stepped downstairs we’d resolved, were hugging and only a few tears had been shed. It wasn’t that we’d fixed the issue of what to do with our material possessions. But we quickly came to the conclusion that we’ve been avoiding this issue {each with our own reasons for doing so}, and it was time to begin working together on this problem.

A good 24 hours later on Date Night, he was sweet to encourage me for being the one to take the first step toward him in our conflict. We both know he does it more than I do. But something was different this time. I felt it.

In past conflicts I’ve had this intense feeling of opposing him. Not this time. I knew we were in this together. I knew that I needed his help. That we are a team. And that we both have room to grow—in understanding one another, communicating, working together, and finding a solution we can both live with.

And in that moment it became clear to me that this issue is a testimony to God’s wisdom in putting us together. And together we’ll figure it out…even if it takes the rest of our lives.

What about you? How can you work to be on the same team with your spouse during conflict? 

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Post tags: Communication, Conflict, Make-Up-Monday, Trust

Do you remember learning how to drive? With 20+ years of experience under my belt {and now, finally a safe distance away from the wrecks and tickets of my teens and twenties}, I feel like I’m a pretty decent driver. I’ve almost always driven a car with a manual transmission, so when I was 15, that’s what Dad used to teach me.

If you learned the same way, you can probably bring to mind memories of the characteristic lurching, screeching, whiplashing, white-knuckling of those early days learning to use the clutch properly. I distinctly remember sweating profusely as I tried to drive up the steep incline that was our driveway for the very first time.

The Husband and I went on a walk last night in our neighborhood. On our way home we stopped at a bench that sits in the parking lot of an abandoned big box store. {Sounds romantic, I KNOW!} But the sun was setting, we could see little peaks of mountains over the trees and it was just so peaceful.

We’d noticed a car running laps through the huge, empty parking lot. Up and down. Back and forth. Signaling at every corner despite being the only vehicle around. Ah, yes, daddy was teaching his young daughter to drive. After about 10 minutes of entertainment watching her learn to use the clutch, another car arrived. Driver and passenger switched seats and a second driving lesson ensued. For about 45 minutes we just sat and talked and reminisced about our own teenage driving lessons and watched these two—so carefully avoiding each other—circling the lot. It was QUITE a Sunday evening event!

This may be a reach, but as we talked, and watched, and waved at one of the daddies, and giggled when he feigned fear at his daughter speeding past us, we knew there was some sort of analogy to be made here.

And that’s where I’m going with this…

Today is Make-Up-Monday….And yes, we did have conflict over the weekend. And no, I’m not sure I really want to talk about it. I was emotional. Needing affirmation. Not communicating so well at first. Fearful of hurting his feelings. Struggling with my own feelings. Wishing I didn’t have to say how I felt. And then grateful at his grace-filled response when what I had to say was about how I wish he’d do things differently in our relationship.

And, I’ll admit, I was weary of having feelings I didn’t like and knowing I needed to talk to him about them. I was frustrated by our conflict on a beautiful Saturday night when all I wanted to do was eat fish tacos next to a waterfall at a unique little restaurant in a mountain town we were exploring. I’d been here before, and I was tired of it. I just want things to be good, happy, and perfect in our marriage. But they aren’t always that way.

So, here’s my reach–Learning to drive a stick was frustrating. My dad was so patient with me, and yet I had to learn to get the timing right. To know when to shift and when not to. To figure out where EXACTLY reverse was located so I didn’t try to grind my way there when the vehicle was moving forward at 55 mph. It took time to learn to start, stop, slow, turn. To learn that smooth transition from first gear to second. I didn’t learn it overnight. And then there were the accidents and the speeding tickets. It took practice to obey all the rules. To gain the common sense that experienced drivers have.

And just like learning to drive…learning to have a good, healthy marriage takes time. It takes effort. It takes practice. You don’t just get in the driver’s seat for the first time and have a flawless driving experience for the rest of your life. Marriage is the same. {Not too much of a reach, right?}

So, I’m learning—still—to let go of my desire to NOT have conflict or struggles or imperfections or disappointments in our marriage. Some days being disappointed in something the Husband does or doesn’t do feels like a crushing weight. Like, my marriage isn’t supposed to be this way.  But guess what. I’m sure I disappoint him too. We don’t always see eye-to-eye, even though we’ve worked through difficult financial struggles, are still working through infertility, and I’m sure there are plenty of other struggles ahead.

But the truth is, I wouldn’t change being married to him. Just like learning to drive, right? Just because it’s hard doesn’t mean you’d be better off walking everywhere you want to go. Because no matter how long the learning takes, that day will come when the weather is ideal, you’ve got all the windows down, and the perfect song comes on the radio, and for that moment—you just drive!

I pray that I can live in the moment in our marriage, not worry about tomorrow and continue to learn how to not fear conflict—because I know that conflict helps us grow, it teaches us about each other, and gives us an opportunity to engage at the deepest levels of our being.

What about you – got any good learning to drive stories? Or what have you learned about perseverance in marriage?

© Editor for Live Simply Love, 2012. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Affirmation, Communication, Conflict, Lessons Learned, Love, Make-Up-Monday

Yes, today we are celebrating 1000 days of marriage. And no, I didn’t do the math. I actually ran across our wedding website at The Knot.com a few weeks ago and was reminded by the counter they still have running. Sad to say we never “finished” the website what with all the wedding PLANNING going on. But it’s still fun to look at.

So, in honor of hitting quadruple digits, here’s what I’ve learned in these 1000 days:

My husband is more of what I needed and less what I expected.
I had a lot of fantasies about what marriage would be like. And a long list of preferences about the spouse I desired—most were superficial things about his looks, clothing, job, etc. But God gave me a gentle, kind, warm, sensitive, forgiving man of character who isn’t perfect, but he brings out the best in me and he consistently points me to Christ. Almost daily I am reminded of God’s love for me because of the way my husband loves me.

Staying connected is a daily choice.
Life is busy. We both have jobs, friends, interests and even personal struggles that can easily pull us away from the oneness intended for marriage. We have to make a point, every day, of pausing to talk, connect and touch one another. Otherwise we may be traveling the same path together but ultimately we won’t end up in the same place.

What goes on in my head can’t always be trusted.
I don’t know if this is just a female thing, but my mind can create all kinds of assumptions, lies and issues that do not exist in real life. Instead of thinking and dwelling on things I need to talk about them. The way he’s responding to me may have more to do with his bad day or long commute than something I did wrong, but tossing those thoughts around in my head for hours {or even minutes} isn’t going to help me know how he’s feeling. And along those lines….

Trust my instincts. But don’t just sit there, say something!
If something feels “off” it probably is. I am learning to ask instead of wait for him to tell me. Once we went two whole days thinking the other person was mad. If one of us had just said something we could have figured out what was really going on and reconnected faster.

Sometimes I have to be the one to change.
I’m a night owl, and he turns into a pumpkin by 10pm. One of the biggest adjustments in the first month of marriage was deciding when I should go to bed. Should I hold on to this habit of staying up late at the risk of missing out on sweet time at the end and beginning of each day? I finally decided I had to change. Today, it’s not so unusual for us to be wrapping up our evening by 8:30 and heading for bed. Though it seemed like a sacrifice early in marriage, I don’t regret it one bit.

Conflict, handled well, really does draw us closer.
We’ve had our fair share of conflicts. They aren’t as frequent now. And, for the most part, we’ve moved beyond the petty struggles that often occurred in the kitchen. But when the big stuff comes up, our diligence to work through it together as WE instead of YOU and ME has made all the difference. And on that topic…

Forgiveness is HUGE!
If you’ve been around here very long you’ve heard it before: forgiveness is the number one tool that has impacted our relationship. Choosing to forgive when I don’t want to and saying the words “Will you forgive me?” when I’m the one who’s wrong have made all the difference.

Marriage is not about me.
Whenever I try to make it about me, I get upside down and sideways in my relationship with the Lord…and often with my husband. Marriage is {still} teaching me to put the other person first, to trust all the unknowns to the Lord and accept the difficulties as opportunities for God to grow my character in increased kindness, forgiveness and gentleness.

I’m grateful for 1000 days! How about you?

How long have you been married, and what have you learned?

© Editor for Live Simply Love, 2012. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Anniversary, Communication, Conflict, Cooking, Expectations, Forgiveness, Relationships, Sacrificial Love

Many thanks to Whitney–coming to us today from her blog The Married Me–for submitting to What I Love Wednesdays! Take it away Whitney!

What I love most about my husband Chris is how incredibly hard working he is.  As a kid he started his own mowing business at thirteen and I don’t think he has stopped working since.

When we were teenagers it was nice that he could always afford to take me out to a movie or dinner, but when we got married it morphed into a more mature desire to provide for this new family we created when we exchanged our vows.

I still have one more year of nursing school to finish and his dedication to being a provider has allowed me to not have to pick up a part-time job while dealing with the stresses that nursing school brings me. That piece of mind is worth its weight in gold and I am so incredibly blessed to call him my husband. I know that being the sole income for a family comes with a lot of added stresses but he rarely shares them with me and instead bears the burden on his own and works overtime to leave us comfortable. I’m so grateful.

Thinking about it I probably don’t even come close to thanking Chris enough for all the hard work he puts in for our little family, so thank you to Merritt for allowing me to profess my gratitude in a new way from the Live Simply Love blogtop!

Want to share what you love about your spouse?

You can be featured in a future What I Love Wednesdays! Just email me: merrittATlivesimplyloveDOTcom.

© Editor for Live Simply Love, 2012. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Love, Sacrificial Love

Blogging through the first years of marriage has been such a learning experience. And while I’ve been pretty open here about conflict in our marriage and struggles we’ve had, believe it or not, it is often difficult for me to share some of the deeper things going on inside my heart. {Shocker, right!?} And today is one of those days. I awoke in a bit of a cloud this morning. Not really knowing why but feeling a wave of discouragement sweep over me as I came to terms with a new day.

I’m still feeling a bit stuck there, even now, hours later. I know it will pass. I know I won’t always feel this way, but because I feel it right now, it’s kinda difficult to shake.

But as we were standing in the kitchen together this morning, the Husband noticed I was a little “off”. When he asked how I was doing, my tears began to fall. He stopped in his tracks and reached out to just hold me. He’s really good at that. He doesn’t need an explanation. He doesn’t try to fix it. He’s just there. And then, before he left for work, he said, “I’ll pray for you extra today.”

I’ve probably said it before, but I’m so grateful for his kind and gentle heart, his willingness to pause and just be there for me, and his consistent prayers. It’s a bright shining light, even on a dark day.

Want to share what you love about your spouse?

You can be featured in a future What I Love Wednesdays! Just email me: merrittATlivesimplyloveDOTcom.

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Post tags: Friendship, Love, Prayer, Relationships

Here’s a little What I Love Wednesdays from Melissa, just days past their year anniversary! Happy Anniversary Melissa & Wyatt! Thanks for sharing a little bit of what you love with us today.

My husband, Wyatt, (lovingly known as “Hubs” on my blog) and I have been married for just over 1 year now, and I can’t believe how fast the time has gone! It seems like just a few weeks ago that we were so impatient we could hardly wait for our wedding day to get here! And it seems only a few years ago that we had our first “date” on a group trip to Worlds of Fun when I was just 15 years old.

It’s hard to pick just one thing I love about him, but I think one of the best things about Wyatt is the way we laugh together.

I often take laughter for granted. As we’ve grown up throughout this past year and faced more real struggles and less silly times of just hanging out with friends, I’ve realized that I need to cherish the moments we have that are just dedicated to being silly and happy and in love with each other. No worries, no grumbles, no stresses, no busy schedules or homesickness, or any of that stuff that can sometimes steal our joy. The fact that we have each other is enough, and I love how spending a few moments being ridiculous together reminds me just how happy this man I married makes me, no matter what we’re facing together.

Whether it’s a joke, funny memory, crazy situation, or just the simple way we know exactly where the other is most ticklish, laughing with Wyatt is one of the simple joys in life that I hope to never have to live without.

And I hate to be biased, but Hubs has the best laugh and smile of anyone I know. He uses his whole being to express his joy, and I love the way his eyes light up with a spark as his whole face transforms into his giant smile. It’s truly my favorite sight to see.

On July 9, 2011, I truly did marry my best friend, and I’m so blessed to be able to spend the rest of my life with him, laughing together as we create our own happily ever after, one moment at a time.

It’s so easy! Share what you love about your spouse for a future What I Love Wednesdays. Just email me: merrittATlivesimplyloveDOTcom.

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Post tags: Laughter, Love, Marriage, Newlywed

What do you want to eat tonight?

I don’t know. What do you want to eat?

Sound familiar? For you and your spouse it might not be about food or restaurants. Maybe it’s something else like weekend activities or date nights. Sometimes we give the “I don’t know” answer and defer to our spouse because we really don’t know. Other times it’s because we want the other person to make the decision. Whatever the reason, simple decision-making can become a source of conflict in marriage.

Our friends Aaron and Lee have been married for eight years now. Though they would both say marriage was challenging for a majority of their newlywed years, their ability to work through and come up with creative solutions since then has really produced some beautiful fruit in their relationship.

We spent time with the two of them recently and learned about a little activity Aaron calls the “Indecision Game.” It’s something Lee invented to deal with what to do when she’s feeling indecisive. I thought it was creative {and fun} so I asked their permission to share it with you.

Lee kicks it off. One at a time, he chooses two restaurants in each of the different food categories. In a big city, the options are plentiful. So he uses this tool to ease the decision-making process and, in the end, avoid unnecessary conflict and misunderstanding.

It goes a little something like this:

He’ll start with a question like, “Do you feel more like {name of a fancy sushi restaurant} or {name of a casual seafood restaurant}?”

She’ll answer, and he’ll use that information to come up with another pairing.

“What about {neighborhood Mexican restaurant} or {quick service taco joint}?”

And with each answer, it narrows down the pool of prospective options.

It works for them because it gives Aaron a chance to think through it through—elimination style. And, with each question, he gets to know one more piece of information that helps guide his next pairing and ultimately eases them into the final decision.

It helps to know a little bit more about where things went in the past before the “Indecision Game” came into being. With a sincere desire to know what would appeal to her in the moment, he’d ask where she wanted to go. She’d answer, “I don’t know,” and he’d say, “Ok, well, let’s have BBQ.” And she’d say, “But I don’t want BBQ.”

In his mind, it was easy. She didn’t have an answer, so he’d easily provide it. But his “solution” usually didn’t resolve the issue. Let this go on for a few more rounds of his suggestions and her rejections and all of a sudden he’s exasperated from trying to read her mind and she’s frustrated with the entire situation. {Not to mention that it’s dinner time, and they were probably both hungry to begin with!} It’s a conflict waiting to happen.

That’s why the Indecision Game is such a genius idea. He’s found a creative way to try to learn more about his wife in the moment without putting undue pressure on her. The fact that he turned it into a game makes it fun for both of them.

I also have to mention, it totally fits Lee’s analytical nature to come up a creative solution that challenges him and serves them both in the process. It turns what could be a frustrating situation into a quick and often happy resolution.

Do you and your spouse have trouble making decisions about day-to-day topics? What do you think of this idea? 

© Editor for Live Simply Love, 2012. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Conflict, Creativity, Decision-making, Lessons Learned, Marriage, Newlywed

Happy Independence Day! All our local fireworks have been cancelled {which makes sense because of the fires across the state of Colorado}. What are you doing for the 4th? Why not take a minute and send me an email {merrittATlivesimplyloveDOTcom} with a quick paragraph {or two} sharing what you love about your spouse. Here’s one from a reader for a little inspiration…

Jenny runs a blog over at Conscientious Confusion where she writes about green living, natural health, cloth diapering, natural parenting, and conscientious consumerism. Go check her out! In the meantime, here’s her entry for What I love Wednesdays!

One thing that I love and deeply appreciate about Christian is his never-ending confidence in my abilities. When I wanted to sell Arbonne? Do it! When I got an offer to change jobs even though I would need to learn a new programming language? You can do it! I don’t know if it’s worth it to attend this blogging conference when I don’t make any money off my blog. It sounds great! When we were considering me staying home after our second child was born, even though the money would be insanely tight? It’s worth it! Now I really believe in Young Living essential oils, and I’d like to sign up for that even though we all know what happened with Arbonne? I have faith in you! I haven’t worked out in 2 years, but I think I’m going to teach Pilates? All right!

I might add that he has been batting almost 100% (except for Arbonne…totally my fault, I got carried away buying things!) with his confidence in the things we have talked about together and decided to do. Thanks for always encouraging me to try new things and to have confidence in my abilities, even when I don’t!

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Post tags: Love, Marriage

Over the last two weeks I’ve shared some key points from a sermon by our former pastor.

Read Part 1 about How conflict can glorify God.

Read Part 2 about How conflict is an opportunity to serve others.

Today is Part 3 – Conflict is an opportunity for you to grow.

Yes, conflict can be painful. And so is growth. In fact, if we’re paying attention, our willingness to engage in conflict will most certainly bring to light new information about our sin. Ouch!

I used to view conflict as someone else’s problem. As in, the other person has a problem and it is bothering me! It wasn’t until I made friends who were willing to tell me the truth about what they saw in me that I began to realize I had problems of my own, and those problems were likely bothering others!

Marriage has often been called a mirror in which we see ourselves for who we really are. The everyday-ness, the constant companionship, the inability to find a mask that will stay on 24/7. That’s what marriage stealthily provides. And when our ugliness rears its head, someone we love, someone we chose to spend our life with, suffers the brunt of it.

In his sermon, Wagner mentioned Martin Luther who said he’d learned more about himself in marriage than the monastery. Though I have never spent time in a monastery, I think I would agree. {Not sure where to attribute Wagner’s statement, but this Martin Luther biography might be able to elaborate if you’re interested.}

There’s no question I’ve had more conflict in marriage than any relationship in my life. The good news is, by taking conflict as an opportunity rather than a curse we have grown through it. Conflict is now one of the tools God uses to refine us and even strengthen our marriage.

Our ability to learn and grow from conflict is all about what we do with it. We can stay or we can go. But rather than think of conflict like school where we begrudgingly {some of us} learn things we don’t care to know, I suggest we think of it like a garden where toil and struggle, sweat and labor, sun {the heat of our emotions} and water {forgiveness and grace} give way to a beautiful harvest of goodness {healing and growth}.

I don’t have a specific example of a conflict from the past week, but I can say marriage has taught me that, in my flesh, I am selfish, prideful, unkind and controlling. Thankfully BECAUSE of marriage and the conflict that has ensued, I’m more aware of these issues and have learned how to spot them a little further off before they, uh-um, hit the fan. And when I miss it, marriage has also helped me grow in my ability to apologize and say, “Will you forgive me for {fill in the blank}.”

When we come to conflict with a desire to grow, a forgiving heart, a willingness to hear the other person and humility about ourselves, our fears are usually just that—fears. Thankfully, I’m not as blind as I once was. And I’m not as afraid to hear the truth. In fact, these days I want to know what others see in me that I don’t see. And, as the one closest to me, the Husband has the “privilege” of pointing some of those things out. But my awareness of my tendency to sin against him and my willingness to own it and speak it {and his as well} have grown us in our trust for one another and the strength of our marriage.

What about you? Has conflict produced opportunities for growth in your life?

© Editor for Live Simply Love, 2012. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Communication, Conflict, Lessons Learned, Make-Up-Monday, Trust