They say that the longer two people are married, the more they begin to look like one another. They complete each other’s sentences and can order for their spouse at a restaurant. They know when the thermostat is set too high or too low for the other, and they can tell who the other is speaking to, simply by how he answers the phone.

And yet with all that is comfortable, assumed, predictable, and known between a husband and a wife, we often overlook six simple words we so easily offer to others:

How can I pray for you?

Though I can’t relate to my husband and I growing in likeness, I do realize how much 16 years has knit our hearts to one another and melded our goals and desires. Yet, have you ever heard your spouse share a prayer request to others in a way that surprised you? I have.

Nov 25
Nov 25 Everybody's a Fixer Upper

Ashleigh Slater

Marriage/Relationships

I'm not sure who was more excited. My four daughters or me. You see, we were about to attend Frozen on Ice.

Unlike many moms and dads and babysitters and grandparents and teachers, I haven't grown weary of the tale of Anna and Elsa. You won't find me plugging my ears and humming loudly when "Let It Go" plays on our Pandora Disney channel. Nope, I jump right in and belt it out with my girls. And when my kids hit "play" for the five-hundredth time on the Blu-ray disc, I seem to cry harder at this story that so beautifully illustrates the power of love to cast out fear. And I marvel once again at how well-crafted the script is. (You can graduate the film student from film school, but you can't take the need to analyze films out of her ... even 11 years later.)

Nov 24
Nov 24 12 Fun Family Traditions To Try This Holiday

Unveiled Wife

Fun For Kids, Homemaking, Marriage/Relationships, Parenting

Entering the holiday season can be familiar and exciting, but it can also be overwhelming because it comes so quickly. If you are like me you wish it was extended over a longer period of time just so you can savor all of the seasonal benefits such as holiday themed cups at coffee houses, the smell of wet concrete from rain or even snow, pumpkin everything, and of course eggnog. This time of year is special and can often times bring up fond memories of the past, especially if families made an effort to incorporate traditions. We find ourselves taking turns in conversations reminiscing of past seasons and what made it the most special to us. Don’t you agree?

Nov 21
Nov 21 When We Are Given More Than We Can Handle

Summer Saldana

Cancer, Faith, Following God, Hope, Marriage/Relationships, Miscarriage, Parenting, Prayer, Special Needs

"I'm tired of being afraid. I'm wondering how I got this way. I'm trying to remember what life was like before. Panic moved in without even knocking on the door. Have mercy on me. I'm not who I used to be. Have mercy on me. Jesus, please..." Have Mercy on Me lyrics, -JJ Heller

I remember so clearly, as though it was only yesterday and not nearly three years in my past, those overwhelming feelings of panic that would run through my veins every minute of every day and night for what seemed to be months on end.

I can close my eyes and instantly recall the constant unrest that would swirl around within my mind, and the tears...the most sincere and heartfelt tears I think I may have ever cried in my whole life, that would fall day after day after day. Night after night after night.

Nov 15
Nov 15 Do his Hobbies Leave You Parenting Alone?

Christy Fitzwater

Marriage/Relationships, Toddlers

t’s hunting season here in Montana, which means the men in this family are pouring over maps and pulling out camo. Saturday night my husband and his brother headed out, going east for a scouting trip. This wasn’t a big deal for us, but it was hard for my brother-in-law to leave his wife and three young boys alone for Sunday.

Twenty-four hours is a long time when a woman is parenting little kids by herself.

A really, really long time.