Start a “change reaction” in your relationship by changing yourself first. It’s easy to see how couples get stuck when ‘being right’ has become a habit. Clinging to our ‘right to be right’ is like gangrene in a relationship — it eats away at our intimacy by destroying our willingness to be vulnerable and open with each other. Insanity has been described as doing the same thing over and over while ...

Aussie mum Fiona lives in Switzerland with her hubby and beautiful 15-month-old girl. This Q&A reveals her struggle with postnatal depression and what helped her get through it: What do you love most about being a mum? Being my own boss — no rules to follow except my own Cuddles Dressing my child in adorable outfits What do you find most difficult? I find childcare and housework incredibly boring. This used ...

Let us love our fathers and bear patiently with them in their old age, just as they were patient and loving with us in our infancy. It is hard to explain the love a father has for his children. This story called ‘Father’s Love’, found on a website hosting thousands of stories from all over the world, does a great job. “An 80-year-old man was sitting on the sofa in his ...

Irrespective of genre, and the anti-John Wayne ideology erasing any semblance of authentic masculinity from Hollywood, there have been some serious wins for dads in the father-son category over the years. These films buck the “woke” trend, and carry audiences beyond sloppy stereotypes to a truer representation of dads who are for their sons, and others. Men who raise up their sons. Men who fight for, and alongside their sons, not ...

Managing each other’s expectations in a relationship can be challenging, but here are five steps to building the trust required for a solid foundation from which you can grow together. Today we had a meeting. Sigh… The dreaded meeting! Being a couple and working together is complex. We’re both strong-willed and passionate about what we do, so it’s easy for us to slip into a mode where we single-mindedly pursue what ...

Life as a parent can get terribly busy and overwhelming, but taking a pause to re-focus can help you attend to your responsibilities in a more peaceful and joyful frame of mind. Your “normal” doesn’t have to be frantic. Sometimes it takes a weekend away to give you a new perspective. As you know, I have been struggling to give the best of myself in all the roles I play. And ...

Watching movies at the drive-in is a great family-friendly endeavour! Even those with babies can have fun and a nice break at the drive-in. While I was at my niece’s first birthday party, I was chatting with a friend who randomly asked the question, “Do you ever go to the drive-in?” At that moment, I had a flashback to the one and only time that I had, as a 10-year-old — ...

Becoming a man and a father requires the ability to commit to your family and to sacrifice for them. Here is a frank interview of a dad who had to learn the virtue of commitment while on the job. Benjamin Franklin said, “Honesty is the best policy.” Zig Ziglar, one of the world’s greatest motivational speakers, put it this way, “The foundation stones for a balanced success are honesty, character, integrity, ...

The words we say are of immense importance to our children, who look to us for wisdom and an example of how to think, speak and act. Let us listen carefully to their questions and answer thoughtfully, knowing that we are laying a foundation for the rest of their lives. Is it possible that dad is never wrong? Just because dad said so, it must be true. Well, probably not, but ...

In his book The Power of Commitment, Scott Stanley (USA) provides some very useful insights into the nature of commitment. He identifies two types of relationship commitment: constraints and dedication. Constraint Commitment Constraint commitment refers to the ‘forces’ that resist the separation of a couple even when one or both partners would prefer to leave the relationship. Constraints tend to accumulate with the relationship and begin from very early on, before ...

Good sleep is required for good mental health, but it can be very difficult for a parent of young children to get enough of it to function properly. Having family support in the parenting journey can make all the difference in the world! Feeling blue? The scientific cure may also be my favourite thing in the whole world… sleep. According to this New York Times article, if you get less than ...

Despite the failings and traumas handed down from past generations, with the grace of God, we can break free of toxic cycles and build a far better future for our children. Those who grow up hurting from being fatherless can learn from our parents’ mistakes and develop into life-giving, dedicated fathers. Like every single one of our five kids, wearing the dad hat was for me a cliched process of having ...

Intentionally creating adventures for your children helps your family to grow and bond together in memorable ways which build an excellent foundation for a lifetime. I believe it is a father’s job to create adventures for his children. Pam Brown put it so beautifully in her famous quote, “Dads are most ordinary men turned by love into heroes, adventurers, storytellers, and singers of songs.” Some time ago, I wrote of one ...

Encouraging our children to dream and have a vision to work towards, can help them set goals and get their creative juices flowing, beginning a lifelong quest to build a better future. Saturday morning, driving home from the beach, my 12-year-old son and me, reminiscing and reliving every wave, every manoeuvre, the joy and delight from our early morning surf. Life couldn’t be any better, until… “Dad, look at that, ooohhhh ...

We all understand that our marriages go through their ups and downs, but we often don’t appreciate that they also go through fundamental reconfigurations over the years. We have come to realise that we have actually had several marriages already in our 28+ years together. For example, there was the ‘newlywed marriage’ where we were building a new life together, living overseas and redefining ourselves as a couple. There was the ...

Children are in the process of learning how to coordinate their bodies and they are naturally curious about exploring the world around them, hence accident-prone. Their immune systems are developing, and they can become very ill. Knowing how to do first aid on your child — or his friends — can save a life. Whenever I hear about a tragic accident involving a baby or child on the news, my heart ...

Postnatal depression is real, but take heart — support is available. We need to support new mothers and fathers in their parenting journey. Parenting is challenging, and it takes a village to nurture a family. I remember watching an ad on TV a few weeks before I had my first child. The mum was sitting up in bed with a new babe in her arms, looking calm and beautiful. This picture ...

While homeschooling, a timetable is necessary, but so is the ability to pivot and make space for unexpected events. A balance of routine and flexibility will create a healthy learning environment. Make this an axiom: routine is life, yet without flexibility, a routine life is dull. Without elasticity, routine devolves into a rigid, joyless obsession over ledger ticks and timestamps. Flexibility saves routine from its inevitable dreary end. In the context ...

The movie Belfast is a powerful family movie brimming with joy and hope in the middle of the most difficult and tenuous of situations. This indie film received seven nominations at the 94th Academy Awards, including Best Picture. This is a staggering achievement for an indie film. I honestly thought it could win Best Picture. The bookies had it as the early favourite, but in the end it was pipped at ...

Parenting a strong-willed child can be challenging, but with various techniques, it can be very rewarding. Channel their energy into productive activities, and communicate clearly with them to achieve mutual goals. I’ll begin by saying: I love my strong-willed child. She’s full of light, is daring, boisterous, spirited, and loud. Strong-willed children, as defined by Psychology Today, are children ‘who are stubborn and always have to get their way.’ Writing for ...