http://www.hopeforyourfamily.com Roger D. Butner, PhD, LMFT is a Christian marriage and family therapist. Mon, 21 Jul 2008 03:15:46 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en My wife and I recently went for a marriage retreat at the Parish Hermitage. We really needed it. I really needed it. I was not in a good place regarding my marriage, and my wife and my marriage were suffering for it. And the two things ... http://www.hopeforyourfamily.com/2008/07/18/renewed/ Independence Day is just days away for the people of our country. We celebrate the 4th of July as the day our nation officially became a free land, governing ourselves with independent sovereignty. The Boston Tea Party, The Declaration of Independence, "the shot heard round the world" at ... http://www.hopeforyourfamily.com/2008/06/30/freedom/ If you know me, or read my blog with any regularity, you know I have a passion for helping families navigate the evolving sea of entertainment/media/technology in as healthy a manner as possible. One huge portion of this evolving world is the vast expanse of online "social networking" sites, ... http://www.hopeforyourfamily.com/2008/06/24/way-to-go-facebook/ My four year old son is really growing up so much, and I am so proud of him. We have a lot of fun together, and enjoy learning about life together. It is always so interesting to hear what will come out of his mouth. "I love ... http://www.hopeforyourfamily.com/2008/06/18/buti-need-it/ My lovely wife surprised me at Christmas with a guitar. My first guitar. A very nice Martin acoustic guitar - at that! She has heard me say over the years that "one of these days I'd love to learn to play the guitar," so she decided there ... http://www.hopeforyourfamily.com/2008/06/12/guitar-lessons/ I haven't stepped on the scale for a while, probably a couple months or so.  No big deal.  Surely I'm just holding at the same weight.  Maybe even slowly shedding a pound or two along the way.  After all, I really want to lose about 30 pounds, so surely that ... http://www.hopeforyourfamily.com/2008/06/09/where-did-these-extra-pounds-come-from/ Are you facing challenges in your family this summer that could use some expert guidance? Have you discovered a wonderful experience, activity, place to go, or routine that works great for your family, and is worth sharing with others? Would it just be really cool to have YOUR topic shared on TV? If ... http://www.hopeforyourfamily.com/2008/06/06/summertime-family-issues/ Here's a link to a terrific resource for setting the right tone for family life this summer. Make it a MediaWise Summer! http://www.hopeforyourfamily.com/2008/06/06/mediawise-summer/ This post has a very simple message: When your child (or grandchild, niece, nephew, neighbor child, etc) wants you to join him/her to play with water balloons and sprinklers and trampolines in the backyard, and you really don't feel like it and would rather just go inside and crash on the ... http://www.hopeforyourfamily.com/2008/06/04/splash/ A couple nights ago, my wife and I had an intense extended discussion about several points of different perspective, with which we both have very strong emotional connections. Well, I guess some might call that a fight. Two mornings later, I am extremely grateful for two things in ... http://www.hopeforyourfamily.com/2008/05/15/communication-and-calm/