Buried in the Middle

Courtney has had a couple of interesting articles lately that I would like to touch base with. In one of her more recent articles she describes how she and Wayne have talked about their funeral arrangements. No one really likes to discuss their partner or any of their other loved ones passing away. However, it does happen and knowing the wishes of one another is a good idea. In her article Courtney discussed how one of her friends brought it to her attention that although she has things planned out for her and Wayne, a new wife for Wayne may … Continue reading →

Latin America vs. Europe Dispute Resolved

A few months back I’d written about a the Latin America vs. Europe dispute Wayne and I’d been having. To reiterate: we’ve both been wanting to go on vacation out of the States, but we haven’t been able to agree on where. He wants to see Latin America; I want to see Europe. We finally found a way to settle it once and for all. The Contest Because of the current economic situation, it’s not the best time to head to Europe. I know that. And Wayne really knows that. (The accountant in him was raising objections left and right.) … Continue reading →

The Older Couple at Church

When my mom was living with us, Wayne and I made it a point to take her to church on Sundays. She was Catholic, we’re not, but the Sunday after she died, we made a point of going to her church anyway. It was part of our own private memorial to her. We arrived a little early and took a seat in one of the back pews where we’d sit with my mom. I immediately started looking for them –the older couple Wayne had spotted the first Sunday we’d gone with my mom. “Aren’t they cute?” he’d leaned over and … Continue reading →

Broken Ring, Broken Heart

Could there be anything worse than losing a wedding ring? I’m not sure, but there’s something that’s equally as disturbing: Losing the diamond from your engagement ring. (The real answer is actually: “Plenty!” I found that out the hard way, though. The day after I lost my diamond was D-day.) The Discovery The night before the D-day oncologist appointment, while Wayne hung out with my mom, I took the opportunity to make a run to Target. After that I needed to stop at Publix. It was en route from Target to Publix that I went to scratch an itch on … Continue reading →

He Stepped Up When It Mattered Most, Part 2

In Part 1, I started explaining how Wayne stepped up as my mom neared the end. This is the conclusion of that tale. Saturday, June 14 We’d just gotten set up with hospice the day before, June 13, when the very next morning my mom suffered a series of mini-strokes. As I was on the phone with the hospice describing her symptoms, she started throwing up all over herself. Wayne was the one to clean her up. Then while we waited for an ambulance to come transport her to an in-patient hospice facility, I went to take a shower because … Continue reading →

He Stepped Up When It Mattered Most, Part 1

As I wrote about over in Pets, my mom’s battle with cancer and dementia ended last Thursday when she passed away peacefully in her sleep. I hate that this is my first blog back after my long absence from the Marriage Blog. I have some happier, snappier articles planned for the future, but given the circumstances this one seems most fitting. After all, regular readers know I was at a very low point because of all of this. So low in fact I thought I was facing a marriage crisis. The Crisis Defined But it turned out to be more … Continue reading →

A Unique Wedding Dress Story

Previously I began a discussion about wedding dresses. The significance of a wedding gown is very important to some families. In many cases wedding dresses are passed down from generation to generation. Brides wear the same dresses worn by their mothers, grandmothers, and soon to be mother-in-laws. The dress carries a great significance to the wedding and to the marriage. However I came across one story of love in which a bride wore a wedding dress with even more significance than the passing down through the history of family brides. The story all began when John Wakely was in World … Continue reading →

Conception without Communication

For the ones of you that keep up with Beth in Mental Health, she has a very interesting series about marriage currently running. In her story she tells of one couple that is married but rarely has sex. It seems that the wife refused her husband’s intimacy altogether until she was ovulating and ready to conceive. She then approached him with sex and got pregnant (this actually happened twice). Beth’s story continues and is still in the works with article three to come. If you have not checked it out, I suggest that you do. If you are interested in … Continue reading →

The Notebook: The Epitome of Devotion

I’ve been reflecting on devotion and devotion levels recently. Because the stroke seems to have enhanced my mom’s dementia, the romantic in me has also been reminded of the movie The Notebook. If you have not seen this movie, in one of her blogs Christian Blogger Dale Harcombe summed it up best: “Caution – don’t attempt to watch this movie unless you have a full box of tissues handy.” Where the storyline is the epitome of devotion, the movie is the epitome of a tearjerker for sure. Wayne was actually the one who reminded me about the movie. I had … Continue reading →

Devotion Levels: Benchmarks

After my More Devoted Than He Is article, which some may have construed as a rant (probably rightly so), it may seem I’m hung up on the matter of devotion levels. I am. The cause of my distress is fairy tales. Not the Disney variety, but true life fairy tales. Ones where the prince is an Everyman and the princess-to-be an Everywoman. They’re common folk, same as you or me, who have not only found true love, but have seen it put to the test and have conquered the challenge together. Trading Places was full of anecdotes about such people, … Continue reading →