Be Good to Your Marriage

Do you want to be good to your marriage? Now, not later when the kids grow up, is the best time to be good to your marriage. Your marriage can actually influence your children in a very positive way -- especially when you're good to it!

Children who grow up in happy, intact, functional families with parents who love each other unconsciously learn the roles they will later need in marriage and parenthood. So as you build your marriage, you're mentoring your own children. Here are 10 ways to be good to your marriage:

1. Call your spouse just to say "I love you!"
2. Scratch your partner's back.
3. Get up with the baby, and let your spouse sleep.
4. Let voice mail collect your calls or turn the phone ringer off so you can concentrate on each other.
5. Light a scented candle.
6. Eat a bowl of ice cream together after the kids are in bed.
7. Turn off the TV.
8. Put on your mate's favourite music.
9. Write a letter and tell your mate why you'd marry him or her all over again!
10. Get out your wedding pictures, look at them together, and rejoice that you married each other!

~ David and Claudia Arp, MSW, founders of Marriage Alive Seminars, are marriage educators, columnists and authors of numerous books and small group video curriculum including The Second Half of Marriage and 10 Great Dates (Zondervan) Website: www.marriagealive.com

Family Life website--http://www.familylifecanada.com/