Give yourselves and your children the best gift!

The best gift? Put your spouse first. Plain and simple.

Paul and I try to get away, really away for a weekend at least twice a year. And, we actually believe that we should do this quarterly. AND, we try to get away for a week together once a year. I remember clearly when we were given that advice. We went to an American Family Services marriage weekend in Valley Forge PA. I was pregnant with Scott- so that means it must have been in the fall of 1986. The teaching couple shared that that was one of their best pieces of advice. They challenged us to test it. And test it we did, and proven it is! We love to get away together - without friends, just the two of us! and our kids never seemed to mind. In fact, they even seemed more secure. They knew that we were actually protecting our family.

We just returned from a weekend to the Hudson Valley, NY. We stayed at Captain Schoonmaker's bed and breakfast. Lovely! No TV! It just forced us to talk and reconnect....

Give yourselves this gift! Test it for your own relationship - find how true it is!

Enjoy the pictures from our weekend away. (Next time I will add "us" in those pics for you!)

The wedding ring - a tribute to a long and happy marriage....

Our eldest is now married. Kurt married Stephanie on July 8, 2009! What a lovely wedding! What an amazing couple! They had quite a few pictures taken of their wedding rings. One was with their grandmothers' hands holding the rings. Those aged hands - filled with many memories, hard work and love - holding brand new, shiny wedding rings.

I want to share an exerpt with you about wedding rings from "Ohio Weddings" by Beth Laughner. This is a story about a couple who had been married for a while.... "Nathan's wedding ring. (Judi had found it.) Carefully she lifted the ring and held it between her fingers. The beaded edge was slightly worn and Judi smiled sadly. The jeweler had explained that over the years the edging of their matching rings would eventually wear down into a radiant, shiny gold ---- a tribute to a long and happy marriage......" So, my beloved readers, when you look at your wedding rings, remember the covenant you made to each other. Honor that covenant, and you too, will have radiant, long and happy marriages.

This is a picture of Paul's wedding band. It used to be brushed gold - it is now shiny and smooth! How cool is that?