We got married when my wife, Nancie, was 23 and I was 25, bless our hearts. Our first couple of years were filled with moments of awesome mixed with moments of awful. We should have had moments of awesome—we loved and liked each other, laughed...
As a kid with ADHD before it had a name, I struggled. I would blurt things out at school and home. I was told much more than most kids to watch out, wait my turn, pay attention, and stop talking. While my behavior was understandably...
I’m in the middle of writing a book on handling emotions in marriage. In the beginning, I thought I was the perfect guy for the job. After all, I must be in touch with my emotions because I cry at manipulative holiday grocery store ads,...
When I was invited to host the All Pro Dad Podcast, I had a lot of reservations. Doesn’t being a podcast host suggest you are a subject matter expert? I certainly have a lot of parenting miles on me and have learned a lot of...
The average height for a sixth grader is around 4’10”. The average height for a man is 5’9”. Therefore, if you are a dad of a sixth grader, then you are probably 23% taller than your kid. For perspective, it would be like your boss...
One of my pet peeves is hearing well-meaning people warn freshly engaged couples that "happiness in marriage takes a lot of hard work.” Who got married for that? Who came in and said, “Oh, Mom and Dad, I’ve met the most amazing woman in the...
I recently asked on social media, “Growing up, what were you taught about men and emotions?” My feed was full of answers like: • “Taught? About emotions? What?”• “If you don’t stop crying, I’m going to give you something to cry about.”• “Take that look off...
Sociologist Linda Waite from the University of Chicago studied 550 adults from a national database. Sixty-four percent of those who said they were unhappy in their marriages but stayed together reported they were happy five years later, while 50% of those who divorced or separated...
One of my all-time favorite movies is The Sandlot. Young Scott Smalls moves to a new neighborhood. His mom encourages him to get out, make friends, and even “get into a little trouble.” The movie is based on Scotty and his friends’ adventures on and...
As someone who works with married couples, I hate this type of message from someone I haven’t heard from in a while: “Hey, I was wondering if you would have time for a call, coffee, or lunch.” Translation, 99% of the time: “My marriage has...