The longer you share life with your spouse, the more you can struggle with frustrations and disappointments that chip away at your love. Through the years, we’ve heard from many couples who sincerely love one another but struggle to like each other or feel satisfied in their marriage anymore.

Every couple goes through seasons of feeling hurt or let down. They begin to pull apart. Joy fades. They lose hope that they’ll ever get what they want from their spouse. Bitterness creeps in, hardening hearts and crushing hope for tomorrow.

Does it feel like arguments are frequent, but moments of closeness are few and far between? Is it difficult to cherish your spouse for who they are? Do you feel lonely, misunderstood, or ready to give up on your marriage? Our guest is here to help us discover how to get rid of bitterness and love one another with the love of Jesus.

You may recognize him from The 5 Love Languages® series. Gary Chapman is an author, speaker, and counselor. He’s the director of Marriage and Family Life Consultants. Gary has a passion for people and helping them form lasting relationships.

Gary shares with us:

• The three questions to start asking your spouse
• Why you should negotiate your differences
• The power of loving your spouse with a godly love
• And more!

We hope you enjoy this conversation!

Show Notes: growinghometogether.com/gary-chapman-113

Three and a half years ago, we stepped into a whole new world with the birth of our first grandchild. Everyone told us that this new chapter would be full of joy, laughter, and love for this tiny person. And they weren’t wrong!

Still, we had no idea just how amazing grandparenting would be, and soon we were dropping everything for the chance to see him and make memories together. Today, we are the grandparents of three little ones (and another one on the way) and we love to spoil them like crazy.

But we also know that being a grandparent is about so much more than the fun, silly moments—we are called to a special role that is very significant in their lives. Our latest guest, Larry McCall, knows this responsibility well. He is a pastor, author of the book Grandparenting With Grace, and the grandfather of six kids. Larry has a passion to equip followers of Christ to have an impact on their grandchildren’s lives both now and for eternity.

In this episode, Larry shares:

• Our biblical call as grandparents
• Ways to cultivate a close relationship with grandchildren
• The importance of respecting boundaries
• And much more!

Christian grandparenting resources are such a blessing—but sometimes, it can feel like they are few and far between. That’s why we are so grateful for this conversation, and we hope it serves as an inspiration and encouragement on your grandparenting journey. Enjoy!

Show Notes: growinghometogether.com/larry-mccall-112

One of the hardest moments I (Joanna) can remember as a mom is when our six-year-old daughter refused, to the point of tears, to wear her blue pants with a butterfly on the pocket. Thinking she was just being stubborn, I refused to back down—and it wasn’t until two hours later that I finally gave up on trying to convince her.

Well, a few months later, I learned that our daughter has a significant sensory processing disorder. Those pants that I was so determined for her to wear were actually causing her very real physical pain. In my determination to prove my authority, I was not just hurting my daughter’s spirit, but her body as well.

This is just one of countless examples I could give of how we can parent with the best intentions but still make mistakes. When this happens, shame can wash over us, polarizing our relationships and overwhelming us with despair. If you are struggling with guilt and shame today, I am so happy to be able to introduce you to this episode’s guest, Jodi Jackson Tucker.

Jodi is a biological, foster, and adoptive mother to eight children with her husband, Jerry. She is a sought-after speaker, ministry leader, and the author of Healing for Every Heart in Adoption. Jodi knows what it’s like to battle and overcome feelings of guilt or thoughts that she is simply not enough.

In this episode, Jodi shares:

• How false beliefs can shake our confidence
• The role of prayer in our parenting
• A mom’s truest job description
• And much more!

Mom guilt is something every woman will experience at some point in her parenting journey. I hope Jodi’s insights will encourage and help you navigate those feelings. Enjoy!

Show Notes: growinghometogether.com/jodi-jackson-tucker-111

Do you have a dog who panics on a trip to the vet or groomer? It can be quite an ordeal! It’s something we experienced recently with our Bernedoodle, Jovy, on grooming day. While the perceived threat wasn’t real, her reaction to it could have put her (and Joanna!) in real danger.

We can sometimes react just like Jovy as we interact with our spouse. Something that seems simple on the surface can trigger instant feelings of stress and anxiety. Our bodies go into overdrive. And in our fight to feel secure with our spouse, we only push them further away.

These painful patterns can occur in any relationship—not just marriages—and when they do, we can end up on a trajectory that causes even more pain and frustration. That’s why we are so grateful to have Ron and Nan Deal joining us for a conversation about how emotional reactions can hurt instead of help our relationships.

Ron is a bestselling author, licensed marriage & family therapist, podcaster, and popular conference speaker who conducts marriage and family seminars and professional trainings. Nan has a degree in Early Childhood Education and taught in schools for over 25 years. She is a leader with a local Re-Generation ministry and, together with Ron, leads a support group for parents who have lost a child.

Together, Ron and Nan are co-authors of The Mindful Marriage: Create Your Best Relationship Through Understanding and Managing Yourself.

In this episode, Ron and Nan share:

• The four reactive coping styles
• Practical steps to uncover your painful patterns
• The role regulation plays in the equation
• And much more!

This is such a rich conversation about how we can resolve the patterns of the past and find healing in our relationships. Enjoy!

Show Notes: growinghometogether.com/ron-nan-deal-110

On this podcast, we usually sit down with guests to talk about marriage and family life. But in this episode, we wanted to get personal and share a piece of our own story—specifically, how depression has impacted our marriage.

We have been married for over 30 years and have five children together, but what we didn’t know until the birth of our third child is that one in seven women experience postpartum depression (PPD) after birth. Postpartum depression can wear many different faces, such as sadness, anxiety, panic attacks, anger, and intrusive thoughts.

What neither of us could predict at that time is that the birth of our baby would move us to one of the hardest valleys we’ve faced as a couple. Today, we’re sharing what we learned as we adjusted to life with a growing family—while also navigating the effects of this mental health struggle.

In this conversation, we share:

• How stress and depression can impact marriage
• What postpartum depression looked like in our story
• The importance of leaning on one another
• And more!

If you and your spouse are going through a hard season or a mental health issue is taking its toll, we hope this conversation will bring some hope and encouragement your way.

Show Notes: https://growinghometogether.com/depression-109/

For parents, March can often feel like the last calm before the storm. Once April arrives, family calendars are inevitably flooded with school exams, spring sports, band concerts and dance recitals, and a whirlwind of other end-of-school-year obligations. Even if our days are full of good things, this hectic time of the year can make us feel tired, stressed, and disconnected from God and one another.

Our guest—a busy homeschool mom of three—can certainly relate to this sentiment. Ginny Davidson is a speaker, author, Bible teacher, and coach. She knows all about how the feeling of overwhelm can hijack our peace, and she’s here to share some powerful tools that can help us win the battle against overwhelm in our family life.

In this episode, Ginny shares:

• Practical tips for assessing your current schedule
• New rhythms we can lean into this spring
• How busyness can be an issue of the heart
• And much more!

We hope the practical strategies discussed in this conversation will bring you confidence and clarity as you assess your family calendar for the coming months.

Show Notes: growinghometogether.com/ginny-davidson-108

As parents, we do all that we can to love and care for our kids. Our days are often filled with driving them to and from school, packing lunchboxes, helping with homework, doing laundry, and keeping up with everything they need to flourish.

But in spite of all the time we spend doing things with and for our kids, have you found that it can still be a struggle to connect with them in a meaningful way?

We’ve certainly felt this way at times—but we have good news to share. There’s a golden opportunity to reach the hearts of your children in an intentional way, and it’s already a part of your daily routine!

Valerie Ellis is joining us to explain how parents can use bedtime to disciple their kids and nurture their faith in Jesus. Valerie is an author, speaker, and founder of Our Everyday Parables—an online resource that features book reviews and helpful ideas for families pursuing faith and compassion together.

In this episode, Valerie shares:

• What makes bedtime such a special opportunity to connect
• Common challenges parents face when creating consistent bedtime routines
• How bedtime conversations can deepen as your child grows
• And much more!

Bedtime is a wonderful opportunity to encourage a child-like faith in your little one. We hope this conversation helps you work a practice of discipling your child’s heart into your family’s nightly routine.

Show Notes: growinghometogether.com/valerie-ellis-107

As parents, we do everything we can to keep our kids safe, happy, and thriving. We make sure they eat their vegetables, buckle their seatbelts, and do their homework. We are committed to taking them to Sunday School each week, teaching them right from wrong, and nurturing them with love every day to help them grow into the best versions of themselves.

So when we discover that our child has fallen into addiction or some other kind of self-destructive behavior, it can feel like a nightmare. We start to wonder, what did I do wrong? In these tricky situations, we often struggle to know how to help our children, and at times, it may even feel like God has abandoned us.

If you have found yourself devastated by your child’s addiction, we want you to know that there is hope!

Our guest, Dawn Ward, is here to share her story of how God brought hope and healing in her journey as a mom. Dawn is an author, speaker, and biblical life coach. She has written a powerful book titled From Guilt to Grace: Hope and Healing for Christian Moms of Addicted Children.

In this episode, Dawn shares:

• How having a child struggle with addiction doesn’t make you a bad parent
• What to do with fear and worry about our children
• Why it’s important to continue to invest in your marriage even during hard parenting seasons
• And much more!

We hope this episode brings hope and encouragement as you continue to love and support your child, even in the face of their self-destructive behavior.

Show Notes: growinghometogether.com/dawn-ward-106

Welcome to a special episode of the Growing Home Together Podcast—coming to you from the producers!

Hi, my name is Mitch. I support Rob and Joanna in their various creative endeavors by lending a hand with the production of their podcast, social media, blogs, and more.

I also have my good friend, Kelsie, with me to help spread some Christmas joy as we bring you a little bit of a different version of the podcast today.

Like many of you, Rob and Joanna have a to-do list that might be even longer than Santa’s this December! So we thought we would help them out by sharing a devotional for your Christmas season, taking time to reflect on true meaning of the Christmas story, discussing how we can all find beauty in the midst of busyness, and much more.

In this episode, we share:

• A special Christmas devotional
• The Christmas Story from Luke
• A few holiday-themed jokes
• And much more!

December can be such a hectic season. Our hope is that this episode is a helpful resource to refocus back on Christ this Christmas!

Show Notes: growinghometogether.com/beautifully-busy-105

If you’re like us, your weekly routine is filled with events, chores, doctor’s appointments, and more. Depending on the size of your family and how many obligations each person has to juggle, it can be quite challenging to coordinate all the details of who needs to be where and when.

At our house, we have a big calendar hung on the wall of our kitchen that keeps everyone on track and (hopefully) on time. But amid the pressure of our busy family schedule, we constantly find ourselves craving enough time to just breathe and enjoy the company of the people we love. At times, the calendar on our wall makes it feel impossible to find that time—and when we do go too long without Sabbath, rest, and intimacy with God, our souls suffer for it.

That’s why we are excited to welcome Kathi Lipp back to the podcast. Kathi is a speaker, bestselling author, and host of the Clutter Free Academy podcast. Kathi has discovered simple steps for creating a rhythm of rest in our families, and she shares some of them in her latest book, Sabbath Soup: Weekly Menus and Rhythms to Make Space for a Day of Rest. This book holds some delicious recipes, and it also guides us in making Sabbath rest a consistent part of our lives.

Kathi shares with us:

• Simple and practical ways to build a day of rest into every week
• How consistent Sabbath rest will change your life
• The power of a meal to minister to others
• Where to start decluttering before your holiday hosting
• And much more!

We hope you enjoy this conversation!

Show Notes: growinghometogether.com/kathi-lipp-104