The best outcomes for our families requires us to be present and invested! However, if we're faking 'nice' or pretending to be interested because it's simply what we're supposed to be doing, then we'll miss the mark over and over again. Surviving the difficulties until we arrive at the promised land is an enticing option as we navigate family, but this posture is much more likely to produce the harms that we're trying to avoid. Faith, however, gives us both a confidence and an assurance of the things we long to see within ourselves and our family. Blended families must shift from surviving storms to locating the center of the chaos and taking hold of the peace that allows us to endure!

Realizing that you're a people pleaser is a tough revelation! What may have started as a healthy desire to provide support and satisfaction for others, can become an inability to hold back our precious time, attention and resources. When the gift of kindness has become corrupt, we can become the type of people that consider ourselves valuable based on what someone else has to say. Freedom is on the other side of those that break the cycle of pleasing others to our detriment and that of our families.

The connection with your spouse is what keeps the relationship alive and fruitful! Our ability to endure the give and take that comes with family also depends on our efforts to remain on the same page. During this episode Margo and I discuss how we practice the life saving tool of checking in with one another. We also got to do some celebrating because what comes natural now, seemed impossible not too long ago! If you want to hear how an imperfect couple has stumbled through this process of maintaining the right kind of intimacy, then you'll want to take a listen!

It has probably never been so difficult for two people to get on the same page! The confusion around relationships and how they should be done seems to be growing by the day. This is no way to build a foundation for the future. In order to avoid the moment where we're trying to define our relationship, we have to put forth a counter-cultural effort of intention and living with clear direction.

A whole and healthy family absent of resistance is a dream we often aspire toward. Reality may consist of coming to a point of asking ourselves whether we made the right decision to pursue this relationship. It's okay. Most people come to this crossroad! You can be dilegent in your efforts to answer that question and arrive at the best outcome for yourself, and everyone else involved.

Have you ever felt as if your efforts were all for nothing? Have you ever gotten so low that you've even questioned your own value within your family? For most of us, we want to have a positive and lasting impact on those around us, but it often feels as if this hill is far too steep to climb. Evidence of our good works making change for the better can be hard to find at times, but that doesn't mean we're not moving the needle. It may be time to let go of that picture in your mind of what family and relationships should look like, and take hold of a faith that can shift your perspective and transcend your circumstances!

My daughters join me to celebrate the milestone of 100 episodes! Considering I wouldn't be where I am without them, it's about time they made their stamp on the podcast! Each of the 100 messages have been personal as they've highlighted what we've learned and the things that we're in the process of walking through. Grateful for the growth and where our family stands today. More to come!

Do you fight in front of your kids? Well, you should! You may need to redefine what it means to 'fight' with your significant other and some of the rules around what is and isn't within bounds may need to change as well. Nonetheless, much can be learned from a dispute handled the right way. Our kids don't need to be exposed to any and every dispute, but they should witness the way that we handle and resolve conflict. Realizing that disagreement isn't the end of the world is a blessing that they carry into their relationships for years to come!

Margo and I have a long list of the things that we love about one another, but we're not going to pretend that there's a list of things that we don't like. In fact, her words are "the most unattractive thing that you do" to be exact! I had no idea that sitting accross from one another and exchanging things that we aren't necessarily a fan of was a relationship goal of mine, but here we are. Grateful that we've grown to the point where this can take place without insecurity or a desire to take personal jabs taking over. We spend most of our time celebrating one another and sharing the things that we love, so we had a little fun humbling one another for close to an hour!

Anybody dealing with a little bit of chaos right now?? It's so easy for the things that are happening around us to incite responses that can resemble frustration, confusion, anger, axiousness or depression. But do we have to keep going through these cycles? Is our respsponse automated based on the chaos around us, or can we determine whether our peace will remain intact? I can assure you that we have tools at our disposal to combat the craziness!