Lifestyle

3 Common Threats to Relationships & How to Eliminate them

November 13, 2018

Does your relationship suffer from these 3 Common Threats? Find out now and begin the journey to eliminate them before they become toxic.

Too Busy

Everyone gets busy from time to time, we all have a heavy workload from time to time. This is a normal part of life and everyone should be given allowances for this on occasion as it happens to us all. The problem comes in when you become too busy for your relationship, more often than not. Not having time to spend with your partner shows them where they rate on your priority scale.

Putting your partner at the top of your list of priorities is important and setting time aside each day to reconnect is essential for a happy, healthy relationship. It doesn’t always have to be a romantic date night, just a quiet dinner at home each evening will do. Planning a more extravagant, longer outing can be reserved for weekends or monthly depending on your schedule.

Oversharing

Women are stereotyped as being the role in the relationship who is always chatty. In movies, the wife is typically the character seen oversharing details about her marriage with a friend. In reality, both men and women are guilty of oversharing, this can threaten a relationship, no matter which party is guilty. Seeking advice outside of your relationship may seem like a great way to get a quick take from a new perspective but it causes more harm than good in some cases.

Talking to each other and creating boundaries that both parties can agree upon when it comes to including outsiders in conversations about your relationship is best. It may be wise to seek out a therapist that would be able to help on call, there are lots of options online these days. Having a professional to vent to can prevent close friends from being too involved in your relationship while also offering an experts opinion.

Too Much Screen Time

Everyone seems to be addicted to their phones these days, some of them can’t even seem to put them down long enough to drive. With that being the case, its no surprise that relationships are negatively impacted by this obsessive behavior. Constantly staring at your phone isn’t good for you and it is most certainly not good for your relationship but once you have recognized this unhealthy habit, you can being to correct it.

Setting limits like no phones at the dinner table or turning off your cell after a certain time each night can make the transition easy. Spending quality time with your partner, without a cell phone in between you is extremely important. Letting your partner know that their overuse has not gone unnoticed may be all that is required to help them see the problem. If this is not the case and your partner continues to spend more time looking at their phone than they do interacting with you, seeking out therapy may be the next step.

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7 Simple Ways to Connect With Your Spouse Each Day

October 23, 2018

Sometimes we allow our lives to get so busy that we often push aside the important things that keep our relationships going strong, like connecting with our spouses. Finding the time each day to connect with your spouse should be a priority as it is an essential part of any healthy relationship.

These 7 Simple Ways to Connect With Your Spouse Each Day are easy ways to encourage conversation and help to keep your marital bond strong.

Go for a Bike Ride or Walk

Getting a little exercise is not just good for your body, it is good for your soul. Adding your spouse into the mix is a great way to do something positive for yourself and for your relationship. Going for a walk each day or going for a bike ride is a simple thing to add to your daily routine.

Texting throughout the Day

Staying in touch whenever you get a quick second to say I love you or let your spouse know that you are thinking of them is a proven method for connecting with your spouse when you don’t have a lot of time. Being able to go back and read a text from earlier can be twice as effective. Your spouse may have sent you a text in the morning to tell you that they love you but they still feel that way in the evening so looking back is a good way to keep your spirits up.

Writing Notes

It can be easy to be held back by the idea that you aren’t the “writing type” but even the simplest notes can make your spouse feel connected to you throughout the day. Leaving a notebook in a common area is an easy way to encourage a quick note to your spouse, even if it just says that you love them or miss them. Make it a habit and leave notes every day or even a cute drawing or sharing a memory that will make your spouse smile.

Winding Down Together

Sometimes work can get us into a bad mood or make it hard to bond with our spouse. We all are guilty of letting the hard day get the best of us and unfortunately, this can lead to taking things out on our spouses. It can help to find time each day to talk about your day or just forget it all and watch some television together while letting the stresses of the day melt away.

Having a Meaningful Dinner Together

It may seem obvious to eat dinner with your spouse but sometimes when we get busy we tend to check out, even if we are physically present, we are far far away. Using mealtime to discuss the day’s events is a simple change to make because you are going to be eating anyway, use the time wisely.

Catch up on Current Events Together

It seems that politics is a great way to divide everyone but it can also be a great way to bond people as well. Sharing a passion for certain political topics is a great way to bond with each other. Depending on your level of interest in current events, you may even become active in your community together to make real change happen.

Play a Game

Sharing a laugh and enjoying a relaxing game together with your spouse can help relieve the tension from even the most stressful of days. If you don’t have time to sit down together to play a full game look into getting an app on each of your phones that allows you to take turns throughout the day when you have a minute. Some of my favorites are Words With Friends and DrawSomething, the possibilities are endless, find something you both can enjoy.

Finding time each day to connect with your spouse should be at the top of your priorities. These 7 simple ways to connect with your spouse each day can make a much needed positive change in your relationship, today.

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DIY European Mount

October 15, 2018

This post sharing tips on how to Create your Own DIY European Mount contains affiliate links which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link within this post, I will receive a small portion of the sale at no additional cost to you.

Create your own DIY European Mount easily with this step by step tutorial loaded with tips to make your deer skull mount an eye-catching piece of decor.

Sometimes you may Harvest a deer that is not special enough to pay for a traditional shoulder-mount or European mount but you would still like to preserve the memory and have a nice souvenir for your wall.

In this case, I am going to show you how to make a DIY European Mount. This process starts with burying your skull in the backyard and showing some serious patience.

Some people choose to buy Beatles to eat the flesh away when making their own DIY European Mount but that is a tricky process and the Beatles sometimes get mites and die.

Sometimes people prefer to boil their heads but in my experience, that process can be very messy. I choose to bury them in the backyard and wait 12 months to get my keepsake.

This is by far the simplest way to make your very own DIY European Mount.

All you do is dig a hole big enough for the head to fit in and cover everything but the antlers with the dirt. After that I like to cover the antlers with a garbage can topped with bricks to make sure no squirrels nibble away at your rack.

After about 10 to 12 months you simply dig it up and almost everything has been cleaned by Nature. The next step is to hose it off but don’t use a power washer and be careful with too powerful of a stream as many of the nasal cavity bones are very sensitive and will break easily.

I like to use a nylon scratch brush to clean off any excess material that may be stuck to it.

When you are finished it has a darker natural look to it than a European mount that you may pay for. I actually prefer this look but if you prefer the more traditional white color, simply tape off the antlers and spray paint with a bone colored paint.

Also, you can design your own plaque by simply drawing out the shape on a 1×12 board.

After you have sketched out your shape, cut them out with a jigsaw.

The next step in creating your own DIY European Mount is sanding the edges so that it is nice and smooth all the way around your cuts.

You can use a piece of sandpaper for this part or pick up an electric sander, it will make this job much quicker.

Take a sawtooth picture frame hanger and attach it to the back then stain it whatever color you would like.

The back of your DIY European Mount will never be seen once hung on the wall so if you want to save on stain, don’t bother painting this part.

I love the contrast that a black background offers to the color of the skull but I also think light wood adds a nice touch as well.

Choose a shade that will fit in well with the rest of your decor. If you already have lots of mounts in your lovely room of death as Ace Ventura called it, you can try to match your existing pieces.

Or if you are like me, you may shop the ding and dent section of paint at your local hardware store and pick up whichever is on sale.

Then you simply take a small drill bit and drill one hole through the plaque where you can put a screw from the back through the front into the skull of the deer.

I like to drill a small pilot hole in the skull as well to make sure that nothing gets damaged.

Your DIY European Mount is now ready to be hung in a prominent location inside of your home.

Show off your finished product on social media and be sure to tag me so I can see how your DIY European Mount turned out and leave a comment below to tell me all about it.

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How to Not Lose Yourself in Your Marriage

September 17, 2018

When trying to please your husband and be the perfect wife or when trying to please your wife and be the perfect husband, it can be hard to not lose sight of yourself.

It is really easy to put your own needs and wants aside when trying to please everyone else but it can be hard to get back on track when it is time to regain your own identity. Learning How to Not Lose Yourself in Your Marriage is an essential part of a healthy relationship.

Keep Outsiders in Check

A lot of people go through a phase early in their relationship where they feel the pressure to be the perfect wife or husband. It is hard to live up to such a title and sometimes the people we surround ourselves with can have a lot to do with the pressure we feel.

There is a stigma to the mother in law for a reason, they are known for putting unfair pressure on their children’s spouse and it can be hard to live up to their standards. If you find yourself falling short of what you feel is expected of you, it can be easier to lose yourself in your marriage. You may begin to brush your own needs off as you try to work towards meeting expectations that others have unfairly put on you. Talking with your spouse and not worrying about outsiders opinions is the only way to combat the problem, keep everyone else out of your marriage.

Find Time for What You Love

If you are giving up everything that you love or always put your feelings last, you will be to be resentful and those feelings would most likely be directed at your spouse. Resentment is a poison in every marriage because of its divisive ways that will surely tear you and your spouse apart over time.

Finding time for what you love, whether it includes your spouse or not is an important step towards learning how to not lose yourself in marriage. You can include your partner in these activities if they show an interest but it is perfectly fine to take time for yourself even when your partner has no interest in the activities you choose to do. Set aside a fair amount of time each day to enjoy something you love.

Stay True to Yourself

When you were married, your partner vowed to spend the rest of their life with you, so don’t let yourself disappear for the sake of being super-spouse. It can be hard to juggle everything at times but that doesn’t mean

It is important to speak up for yourself and not let your spouse take advantage of your giving nature but if you enjoy spending your time doing things for others, this is staying true to yourself. Don’t let society dictate your role in your marriage, people are clearly doing something wrong as the divorce rate in this country seems to always be on the rise.

Communication is Key

Talk openly with your partner about the areas you feel you need to improve or change as well as what they can work on. Let your feelings be known and work through any kinks you may stumble upon. Don’t keep your feelings of resentment inside, they will come out eventually and not in a healthy way, they need to be addressed.

Communicating with your partner is an essential part of learning How to Not Lose Yourself in Your Marriage. Always be honest and work together on any problems that may arise along the way.

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5 Essential Factors for a Happy Marriage

July 24, 2018

In order to enjoy a truly happy marriage, you need to work at it.

Working on your marriage is an essential part of having a healthy relationship.

When you apply these 5 Essential Factors for a Happy Marriage you are sure to improve the quality of your relationship and keep your marriage a happy one.

Selflessness- Putting your spouse’s happiness and needs first is essential to a happy marriage.

Although this only works if both partners decide this is the best way for their marriage to thrive because this will not work with just one spouse practicing selflessness while the other acts selfishly.

When you love your spouse unconditionally it is much easier to practice selflessness and it may even come naturally to you as you always want what is best for them and the greater good of your marriage.

Finding ways to serve your spouse can promote the idea that your spouse should reciprocate the same love that you have shown to them but remember that this is only truly a selfless act if you do not expect anything in return.

Commitment- Entering into a marriage is a commitment that requires both spouses to work towards a common goal, a healthy and happy life together.

This can be achieved by always keeping this common goal in mind no matter how difficult things may get, working together towards achieving happiness for both of you is essential for a happy marriage.

Patience- Everyone has flaws and we can all be difficult to deal with from time to time.

We all have our moments where we can get a little unbearable and this can be especially hard to deal with when it comes to an argument or fight.

When you and your spouse are passionate about competing thoughts and quickly push each other’s buttons as married couples tend to do when fighting, it is best to practice patience where possible.

Take a walk or breathe and count to ten in order to reset your emotions and show your spouse the patience that they deserve.

It takes a lot of practice to not lose your patience but marriage required work and as long as you are both working towards the common goal, having patience with your spouse will be easier over time.

Forgiveness- Let’s face it, couples fight, it is inevitable.

Sometimes couples will argue in a very calm, constructive way and then there are those arguments where we are so passionate about each other and our feelings that our arguments become full-on grudge matches where we tend to say things we will regret.

Getting so angry that you forget how much you love and cherish your spouse may happen at times but it is best to remember that your argument/fight is only a very small part of a really big commitment.

Learning how to forgive your spouse when they aren’t putting their best foot forward is essential to a healthy and happy marriage.

Teamwork- You don’t always have to figure out who was right and who was wrong, the most important thing to keep in mind when there is a disagreement is that you should work as a team to solve the problem, together.

There are no winners when trying to decide who is to blame for the argument.

Sometimes problems are not solved and are just managed, everything is not always going to be perfect and that is ok.

Working together as a team towards the common goal of a happy marriage is the only way to maintain a truly healthy relationship that will grow with you.

What have you found to be an essential factor in keeping your marriage happy?

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Decorative Antler Home Decor DIY

June 28, 2018

My husband and I love the look of antlers in our home decor and we try to use them as much as possible.

It can be hard to find ways to use antlers in home decor especially when you only have partial sets but this Decorative Antler Home Decor DIY is the perfect way to put your antlers to good use.

After going shed hunting for the first time this year, I know how grateful I should be to have an abundance of antlers waiting for a good DIY project in my home.

It was so hard to find any antlers at all.

After hours of hardcore searching in the woods where there are always deer sightings, we still didn’t find any antlers.

I was really starting to lose hope that we could ever find antlers but thankfully we met a kid at a garage sale who gave us some shed hunting tips so I am excited to put them to use next shed hunting season.

In the meantime, for this DIY project, I used antlers that my husband had already accumulated over the years to

I picked up a piece of shelving that was on sale at the local hardware store and then my husband gathers his tools so we could get started on our Decorative Antler Home Decor DIY.

The first thing we did was arrange the antlers against the woodgrain shelf so we could see just how we wanted our antler home decor to look.

After we decided how we wanted the antlers to line up on our wood plank, we drilled a hole through each antler, then drilled a screw through the wooden plank to secure the antlers.

We added a couple of screws to each antler, pushing through to ensure that the screw went all the way into the wood plank.

When getting supplies for this project make sure your screws are long enough to fit through your antlers and whatever wood plank you choose.

I like the idea of hanging the antlers in a random order with little rhyme or reason to make the final product a more interesting piece.

When choosing where to hang your Antler Home Decor, keep in mind that it is best to secure the wood plank into a stud.

We chose to hang our antlers above the television because it lines up perfectly in the room and fits in with our other Rustic Home Decor.

Pin this Rustic Home Decor idea for when you need the inspiration to create your own DIY Antler Home Decor.

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