Summer Love Language Date Ideas

In order to give you the best content possible, the podcast will be transitioning to a season format instead of a weekly one. Here I explain a little bit of the reasons why, and I can't wait to start publishing episodes again this fall!

It’s Zach’s turn to take the mic as he gives husbands and fathers all the things he wishes he had known before pregnancy and parenthood. Zach takes this episode in three distinct sections: pregnancy, labor and birth, and parenthood.Zach reassures fathers-to-be that changes that occur  during pregnancy do go back to normal. Pregnancy brings a lot of changes, and it can feel like your wife isn’t the same person, but don’t worry, she’ll recover and be that person again. He talks about adjusting expectations with your wife’s diminished abilities to keep up with her normal routines and responsibilities. He also emphasizes the importance of helping your wife feel supported.Zach recommends taking some classes or watching birthing videos to prepare for the delivery. He also talks about setting expectations for the birth plan so dad knows how to best support mom, and process anxieties and emotions that can come to new fathers.Zach talks about some Brownie points for new fathers, and planning on how to help your wife with feeling supported post birth, from needing clothes, or how to help baby.For all things Dad-to-Be, check out episode 59! 

Grace brings back professional doula, Sofia Jacobsen, to talk about all things postpartum, and introduce Sofia’s new online course.Women are so amazing, and honoring our bodies after creating life is so important. Grace and Sofia cover everything from describing what is happening to the body from an anatomical perspective, to how to help recovery. They discuss the importance of proper nutrition and rest, and how that correlates with anthropological traditions.They also talk about the emotional needs of a mother. Sofia offers tips for communicating more effectively with your spouse. Communicating needs, emotions and even about intimacy can shift after postpartum. Grace and Sofia also discuss getting help from neighbors and in laws and how to communicate if that help is. . . less than helpful.Sofia also talks about the importance of building a support system of professionals.  Don’t miss this information packed episode! You can find Sofia on Instagram @themotherseed and at her website themotherseed.com!

Grace welcomes back Dr. Scott Woolley for this week's episode to discuss negative patterns couples develop in dealing with conflict. Dr. Woolley introduces the three main patterns of fighting in marriage, "Find the Bad Guy," "The Protest Polka," and "Freeze and Flee".Grace and Dr. Woolley discuss why being able to identify the patterns in your own marriage allow you to change your perspective, and come together as a couple, or even individually start to address the patterns, to help change behaviors. They discuss how often, fights may seem to be about something surface level, but when actually addressed, can really about something much more vulnerable, such as self-worth, or feeling safe or supported in the relationship.They then discuss how to allow ourselves to become more vulnerable, by acknowledging surface emotions and defense mechanisms, to really address the true problems that cause conflict in a relationship. Dr. Woolley addresses how to ask the right questions about how to change behavior, by figuring out why the fights start, and how to address them differently. He gives ideas for battle plans for couples to work together to improve how they address conflict in their marriage, and cause less hurt during. Grace adds several ideas of conferences, classes or seminars to attend to help boost a couple's skills with these techniques:Hold Me Tight(er) Online Building a Lasting ConnectionJeremy Boden’s Newlywed Course

Budgeting can be so hard, with every guru having a different system, and most of them are, well, complicated. This week I convinced Zach to come and share how we simplified and finally found a stable budgeting and saving system we've used for the last year and a half! Feeling in control of our money, and being able to communicate about our finances and savings goals is so helpful! Learn tips for prioritizing your savings goals, so that savings are meaningful, and not just saving to save. Learn tips to help fund your retirement, and diversify your finances a little. To use our referral to get a Capital One credit card, click here. Also, I forgot to mention this on the episode, but if you're looking for an approach to money that is NOT Dave Ramsey, I really like @deeperthanmoneyco on IG! Speaking of, my account is @gracewjensen, come hang out with me!If you enjoyed this episode, PLEASE rate and review on Apple Podcasts! It would mean so much to me!

I give you some fun (mostly) free summer date ideas according to what your spouse's love language is, and I also share a little idea of how to honor Memorial Day if you're feeling a little guilty for not honoring the day more!

What did I do this weekend that got me thinking about family history? What can family history teach you about your spouse? How can it improve your marriage? There's research about how knowing your family history influences you?!

Zach and I share our personal story of how we would get stuck in the criticism/defensiveness spiral with each other and how we got out of it, with a special emphasis on how recognizing your partner's strengths makes a big difference!IG: @gracewjensenUse code GRACE20 at www.meetjovi.com for $20 off!