Joyful Love

Many couples don't always see eye to eye. This can lead to arguing, criticizing, and blaming, which can be detrimental to a healthy relationship. What if you don't have to agree to have a great relationship, though? What if your differences are for your good? What if you can be on the same team ... with totally different abilities and opinions? You can! But most married couples, over time, use the...

In Day 3 of The Rekindle Your Marriage Workshop, you will learn to take ownership back over your own emotions, actions, and reactions, and ultimately the results in your life. In today's episode, you learn:  That you are equals in this relationship. You have a choice (complete autonomy) over whether to be in this relationship or not. How your thoughts create your feelings. How to use Thought Work...

In today's episode,  you'll learn the ground rules for a healthy marriage. When you approach your relationship with the foundation that you are both worthy of total and complete love, you create safety in your marriage. ✅ Safety to get curious about your differences. ✅ Safety to connect and be vulnerable with each other. ✅ Safety to have different opinions without criticism. ✅ Safety to let yo...

Every couple reaches a point in their marriage where change needs to be embraced.  Most of us don't want to leave our marriages, but we are fully aware that things need to change in order to feel fully alive and happy in our relationships.  If this resonates with you, it's time to rekindle the love and connection you once felt. And it's time to learn simple, yet effective skills that will increase...

Will is the memoir of actor and musician Will Smith.  The memoir provides a glimpse into Will's life from his days as a child all the way through his struggles in marriage. Cris and I recently listened to the audio version together. There were so many insights on what it takes to have a healthy relationship that we decided to chat about it on the podcast today! Tune in to hear why I think Mr. Smit...

It's been said that the deepest need in humans is to feel appreciated. And if we tie that to our relationships, I'd agree. One of the most important things to cultivate in your relationship is a habit of appreciation for each other. Appreciation lets us know that we are valued, validated, and seen. And it feels amazing. If appreciation is missing in a relationship, the heartache is felt and distan...

It's not uncommon for women to feel like they're the ones responsible for holding it all together. From the home to the kids. From work to making sure everyone gets fed. And the thousands of little (and big) things in between. Most women would say, "If I don't make sure it gets done, it doesn't get done." We manage it all. Sometimes well … and sometimes, not so well. Because to juggle it all gets...

When you're in survival mode as a couple, so much can feel hopeless. Now, I'm not just talking about hustle mode, where you never allow yourself to stop being busy.  No, I'm talking about the kind of survival where you feel like something terrible is going to happen if you close your eyes for a minute … if you allow yourself to rest. A traumatic event (or the threat of a traumatic event) can take...

Some relationship experts will tell you to expect less in your relationship. The reasoning is that if you don't expect much, then you'll be less disappointed.  There are certain things we expect that can  create disconnection in marriage. If we are constantly trying to change our partner so that they can somehow fulfill our happiness, those expectations will lead to frustration and bitterness.  Bu...

There are a few ways of thinking about the New Year. One, that it's just another week to keep planning and growing - just like any other week. Or two, you can get excited about reaching for new goals and dive into the excitement of new beginnings. Or maybe you're someone stuck in the middle - not sure how you want to approach the new year. Wherever you're at right now, know that you're all good......

If you've been following me for a while, you may know that I like to give myself a break. Meditation, intentional breathing, napping … anything that keeps my nervous system balanced. And I'm working towards even more downtime in my schedule. It feels a bit radical, I admit. But I'm on a mission to include rest as regularly, daily, weekly, and extended yearly moments of hibernation.  I recorded thi...

In this episode, I'm excited to give you Day 1 of the Rekindle Your Marriage Workshop. I offered this 5 Day workshop inside the Facebook Group last week and it helped a ton of women light a flame in their marriage again.  We covered everything from making the powerful decision to be all in -  to teamwork and taking ownership for how you show up. We also learned the two most important ground rules...

Living in this present moment is critical for a joy-filled life and marriage. We know this. Instead of living our lives now, we spend the present moment worrying about the future and regretting the past.  We regret not preparing better. We criticize ourselves for not being as 'good' as other families. We judge our own experiences and wish things were different. We criticize our partners, we judge...

Disagreements about money put out the spark in many marriages. About one-third of married adults say that money is a big source of conflict in their relationships. From paying bills, trying to balance things fairly (whatever that means), saving, budgeting, and making more money, these problems can be the end of a relationship if not dealt with.  However, money is just like any other issue we disag...

As we become more familiar with Thought Work, we realize that our feelings are caused by the thoughts we think. This is a powerful realization for most people. And it makes people want to change their thinking immediately. "Oh, this thought is making me feel bad! I need to choose a better thought!" Now, this may work occasionally, but it's not really that simple. We must first start with awareness...

This time of year can be pretty special for most of us. It's a time to be grateful and reflect on the beauty of family. And it can also be challenging. Family get-togethers are not always sunshine and rainbows. In fact, they rarely are! With so many different opinions and personalities, what should be a time to come together and spread joy, can end in tense arguments across the dinner table, past...

Cris and I just finished binge-watching MAID on Netflix. It's a show based on the book by Stephanie Land. MAID follows one woman's story of leaving an abusive relationship.  In today's episode, Cris joins me as we open a dialogue about abuse.  We talk about our experiences of abuse as children and how we're healing together.  How do you make that first step to seek help if you're in an abusive rel...

Love is not a burden. It is not something that should feel exhausting. Loving someone else doesn't have to leave us feeling like a martyr by the end of every night. So why are so many women feeling this way about their marriage? It's time for a shake-up! It's time to flip the script on Love and start seeing it for what it is -  a whole lot of fun! Yes, there are times when Love requires us to dig...

Without love, we will suffer. It's a basic human need. But what does that mean?  We all want a partner who shows up for us, cares for us, and loves us in their own special, unique way. We deserve that. However, if we are not loving ourselves and caring for our own mind and body on our own terms, our mental, emotional, and physical health will suffer. So even when our partners care and love for us...

When two people decide to live together as a unit, there are often times when the relationship gets challenging. Maybe it's been challenging since the beginning or maybe a difficult circumstance in your life sent you into a downward spiral of fighting, arguing or avoiding each other.  Either way, there are things you can do to care for yourself and your relationship while rebuilding trust and conn...

Can you feel contentment before your life is where you want it to be? How about in your relationship? Your health? Your finances? Is it possible to reach for big goals in these areas, yet feel the peace and joy you're longing for before you get there? Yes. And not only is it possible, it's the fastest way to get to your goals. Listen to episode 21 to hear why cultivating contentment before you rea...

One of the hardest parts of being human is forgiving yourself for past mistakes. It's a process to own up to what you did wrong, move out of shame and into wisdom. However, most of us stay in the muck of guilt and shame way too long. And that guilt and shame does nothing for us. It hinders us from connecting with our loved ones and it stops us from personal growth. In today's episode, you will lea...

In this episode of Joyful Love, I am joined by my friend and colleage, Becky Fry. Becky is a Certified Life Coach for moms of kids with autism.  In her work, she helps moms stop feeling so overwhelmed by the unique challenges they face, raising their children.   We discuss how Becky learned to embrace her parenting journey and how parenting a child with autism affects her world.  Join us to hear m...

Committing to change and growth will inevitably bring uncomfortable feelings. But we tend to avoid discomfort in our human experience. So we give up on our goals over and over.... because growth is uncomfortable AF! And then we beat ourselves up and heap piles of judgment on ourselves for … being human. We all do it. But there's a better way. What if we started getting comfortable with discomfort?...

How can 1:1 coaching can help a relationship? Don't both people need to be all in to heal a relationship? How can you make progress if just one person does the work? You're tired of being the only one to make an effort!  I hear you and I get it. In this episode, we'll cover the Power of coaching for one in a relationship. Sometimes, you just need a party of ONE. Listen on to hear why. Get full sho...