Making Love Today

Some couples make life look like it's a walk in the park. Chad and Sunnie are definitely NOT one of those couples. Having faced custody battles, nine miscarriages, and the general difficulties of life together, these two have not let challenges push them apart. In fact, they are about as good of an example as you'll ever find of a couple who has grown closer through adversity. 

Chad and Sunnie first met while they were both married to other people, but it wasn't until they were both divorced that they realized how much they had in common. With one child each from their first marriages, and now two children with each other, they have not let life's challenges prevent them from building a happy and loving family. In this episode, they open up about overcoming their challenges, and also developing hobbies together and even a bit about what it's like to have a "monogamish" relationship. 

Biographical Info:

-Chad is an event manager and Sunnie is a nurse by training, but currently spends her time as a stay-at-home mom, PTO president, and on their HOA board 

-They have been married for 8 years

-They live in Salt Lake City, Utah

-They have four children, Dylan (12), Cora (11), Chad Jr. (5) and Leora (2)

Check out www.makinglovetoday.com to learn more about this couple. Follow us on Instagram @rekindle.love.today or on Facebook at fb.me/Rekindle.Love.Today

Anne and Patrick discuss how Josh and Megan demonstrate the relationship skill of enjoying and engaging in non-sexual physical touch. Anne discusses how what many people refer to as simply being "touchy-feely" is actually a relationship strength. She breaks down why this strength is important and how we can develop this skill in our own relationships, even if it's something we are currently not comfortable with. For a more in-depth explanation of this skill and more suggestions on how to incorporate it into your own relationship check out makinglovetoday.com. 

Relationship Challenge of the Week:  Next time your partner comes close for a calming or comforting touch, pay attention to how you feel and whether you are open to being calmed or comforted. When you approach your partner to give comfort or connect in a calm, peaceful (non-romantic) way, try to be in touch with how they are feeling. 

If this is an area of challenge, start by thinking about how comfortable you are receiving touch and how comfortable you would like to be. If this is a strength already, think of a new way of a new way to introduce non-sexual touch into your relationship. 

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Who would have thought that anything good could come out of working in a call center? What Josh and Megan initially thought was just a college job to pay for books turned into much more as it laid the framework for their future life together. Going on near two decades together as a couple, their time together has not all been... well, together.  Apart for two years with very limited communication early on, these two were somehow able to make their relationship flourish and thrive, building a foundation that carries them to this day. 

Maybe it's true what they say that absence really does make the heart grow fonder. Listen in to hear Josh and Megan talk about long-distance relationships, integrating different upbringings, navigating personality differences, and the difficulties of adding kids to the family! 

Biographical Info: 

-Josh is a sales manager working in the field of organizational behavior change and Megan is a homemaker

-They have been together for 17 years

-They live in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area

-They have three kids, Savannah (11), Charlotte (8), and James (5)

Check out makinglovetoday.com to learn more about this couple! Follow us on Instagram @rekindle.love.today or on Facebook at fb.me/Rekindle.Love.Today 

Anne and Patrick discuss how James and Liza demonstrate the relationship skills of developing shared family rituals and building and reinforcing shared values. For a more in-depth explanation of these skills and more suggestions on how to incorporate them into your own relationship check out makinglovetoday.com. 

Relationship Challenge of the Week:  Identify your own family or personal rituals, whether they be daily, weekly, monthly, etc. Think about how your shared values enter into those rituals. Do your rituals reinforce your shared values? If so, great! Continue to use those rituals as ways to enhance your values. If not, why not? Do an honest inventory of what rituals you have that don't reinforce your shared values, and figure out what changes you need to make to bring the focus back to where it should be. 

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When you and your partner you both have challenging careers and live several hours apart from one another, how do you make a concerted effort to maintain and build a close connection? For James and Liza, the answer is to be deliberate about everything that you do and focus on personal growth over relationship growth. This couple doesn’t take anything for granted, especially their relationship with one another, and so they work every day to be the best version of themselves, for the other person. 

Both children of immigrants from Asia, James and Liza grew up learning the importance of working hard. Both living in California, they’re doing their best to make their own marks on the world while also growing their bond with one another. Their guiding principle throughout all of this is to always remember what their “why” is.

Biographical Info: 

-James is an educational business owner and Liza is a civil rights lobbyist

-They have been together for going on 4 years

-They currently split time between the San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento 

Check out makinglovetoday.com to learn more about this couple. Follow us on Instagram @rekindle.love.today or on Facebook at fb.me/Rekindle.Love.Today

Anne and Patrick discuss how Joe and Stephanie demonstrate the relationship skills of asking for support and supporting personal growth. For a more in-depth explanation of these skills and more suggestions on how to incorporate them into your own relationship check out makinglovetoday.com. 

Relationship Challenge of the Week:  Use the Gottman method of asking as outlined in the episode. First, identify a specific need that you have. State that need to your partner in a neutral way. Then, ask your partner to do something specific in order to help you meet that personal need. All this should be done in a non-offensive, non-confrontational manner. Do this at least three times this week.

https://www.rekindlelovetoday.com/post/joe-and-stephanie-strengths-asking-for-support-and-supporting-growth

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Just entering the teenage years of parenting, Joe and Stephanie share relationship wisdom that comes from nearly two decades together, while still being in the thick of parenting themselves and discovering new things about each other along the way. 

Listen in as these two describe how they've overcome initial challenges such as conflict resolution styles and overall methods of viewing the world, to facing current obstacles of Stephanie going back to school and the additional burden that places on the rest of the family.  Adding in a discussion of why two of their kids were born at home, this is not an interview you will want to miss!

Biographical Info: 

-Joe works in public relations and Stephanie is a lactation consultant 

-They have been married for 17 years

-They have four kids, ages 14, 13, 10, and 8

https://www.rekindlelovetoday.com/post/joe-and-stephanie-differing-conflict-styles

Check out makinglovetoday.com to learn more about this couple or by visiting us on Instagram @rekindle.love.today or on Facebook at fb.me/Rekindle.Love.Today

Anne and Patrick discuss how Camron and Christa exemplified the relationship skills of overcoming together and being separate while connected. For a more in-depth explanation of these skills and more suggestions on how to incorporate them into your own relationship check out our blog at makinglovetoday.com.
 
Relationship Challenge of the Week: Think of a challenge you and your partner face. Just one to start with. Consciously choose to approach it as something to overcome together. If you are currently blissfully without challenges, set a moderately difficult goal. Before every discussion, before making any plans, before getting to work, physically turn toward each other and talk about your shared values and goals that relate to this challenge. Put yourselves on the same team. If you find yourselves disagreeing or working at cross-purposes, stop and set the actual problem aside for a minute and talk about what you do agree on and the fact that you are in this together. Repeat this conversation often.

https://www.rekindlelovetoday.com/post/camron-and-christa-strengths-overcoming-together-and-being-separate-while-connected

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Anne discusses how Jamie and Mikey demonstrated the relationship skills of being resilient and receiving influence. For a more in-depth explanation of these skills and more suggestions on how to incorporate them into your own relationship check out our blog at makinglovetoday.com.
 
Relationship Challenge of the Week: Write down 5 things that you can do to become more emotionally self-sufficient. These should be completely independent of your partner. After you write them down, pick one and do it.

https://www.rekindlelovetoday.com/post/jamie-and-mikey-strengths-resilience-and-receiving-influence

Follow us on Instagram at rekindle.love.today or on Facebook at fb.me/Rekindle.Love.Today 

Anne breaks down the relationship strengths of being considerate and putting an ongoing effort into the relationship. She explains how Erica and Spencer demonstrate both of these skills, and how we can apply them in our own lives. For a more in-depth explanation of these skills and more suggestions of how to incorporate them into your relationship check out our blog at makinglovetoday.com.
 
Relationship Challenge of the Week: At some point during this next week, take a moment, stop, and ask yourself, "what does my partner need, right now?"  Once you figure out what that is, go and do it!  Record your experience with it on our blog or Facebook page.

rekindlelovetoday.com/post/erica-and-spencer-recap-being-considerate-and-ongoing-investment

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