Guest - Words of Williams

This is a guest post by Sarah Greesonbach. She writes and curates the lifestyle and personal finance blog Life [Comma] Etc. Connect with her on Facebook or Twitter for commentary and hot links, as well as pictures of her husband and cat. She releases her first eBook this month, Life After Teaching: The Hands-On Guide for Transitioning Out of Teaching and Into a New Career.

Have you heard the popular wedding Bible verse Ephesians 22: “Wives, submit to your husbands”?

Of course you have. In fact, Kelsey already brought it up in her post The “S” Word. And while she covered her feelings personally, for some reason I still left the Web that day with my hackles the slightest bit raised because I hadn’t yet made peace with the idea. But thankfully, nine months into my own marriage, I have finally come around to it, and I think it is a special message that can save you a few years of pain and misery in your marriage.

Bear with me. Because maybe you’ve googled “wedding” and at some point some jerk said something offensive and used this quote as evidence. And maybe, like me, you have older brothers and a Catholic mother who read this verse with a twinkle in their eye as you tried to find some verses for your own wedding. And maybe you don’t feel the need to understand or appreciate this verse — but that might be a huge mistake.

By Guest on November 2, 2012 3

4 Meal Planning Tips

Hi, I’m Kelly Alberts and I live in the Philadelphia suburbs with my husband, Joel. I work with middle school students during the day and follow cool people on their blogs in my free time. I love reading, cooking, writing, and traveling with my husband. Read more of my ramblings at Philadelphia Filly.

Meal planning is one of my favorite ways to stick to a budget. I find a ton of joy in thinking through what we have in our kitchen, listing what I need, and purchasing food to make creative, healthy meals.

My husband Joel and I have always been conscientious of our money, but because I lost my job this past June, I’ve recently become even more aware (and even more frugal!). Planning 6-7 meals a week takes time and effort, but is truly rewarding. Not only are our meals full of good stuff, they’re much less expensive than eating out regularly!

In Food

By Guest on September 3, 2012 15

Perfect Is the Enemy

This is a guest post from Amber. She is a married mother of two seeking a fulfilling and stylish life for her family. (You should totally click through to her blog to see more pictures of her cute kids!)

As a mostly Type A, typically overachieving eldest child, I can’t help but aim for perfection. As a student, my high strung, meticulous ways mostly served me well. But as an adult, married with children, I’ve discovered that it can be a character flaw. Perfection is indeed the enemy of “good enough.”

In Productivity

By Guest on August 24, 2012 3

The 5 Love Languages of Children

This is a guest post by Tanya Rivka Dy-Peque who is part of the team behind Open Colleges, Australia’s provider of child care courses. Tanya is an educational therapist who has been working closely with kids with special needs for about 5 years now. She can be found navigating her Twitter and Facebook account. (We’ve been wanting to find out Rooney’s love language, so this guest post is coming at a perfect time!)

Every kid deserves the chance to grow up happy. What do kids want after all? They want to feel loved; they want to feel safe and secure. They want not to be hungry or thirsty and to have a shelter over their heads. They want to be respected as human beings and their feelings validated.

Unfortunately, not all children are lucky enough to have those things. Some are victims of their economic situation. Some are victims of unbalanced parents. Others are victims of drug use. But some – and this is most surprising – are not getting the love and nurture they deserve because parents don’t understand how to interpret the language of love their children are using.

In Parenting

By Guest on August 17, 2012 2

Reflections From a New Mom

This is a guest post by Leah Innis. If you want to guest post on this blog, check out our guest post guidelines.

It’s often said, but the transition into motherhood was both the best and one of the most challenging times in my life. After the arrival of my son, I could not imagine my life without him. The blessings and overwhelming love I felt for him were so real.

In Motherhood