Category Archive

marriage

Turn your wedding anniversary into a yearly party

Sometimes your wedding goes wonky, and you’re left feeling less-than-stellar about the whole event. Which really sucks, because you put a lot of effort into that damn thing. But Offbeat Bride Christine (of Christine & Derek’s misadventurous rainbow hodgepodge of freaks & geeks wedding) has a great idea about how to turn that frown upside-down… every year on your anniversary!

You are your own shareholders: How quarterly relationship meetings strengthen our marriage

My husband and I recently celebrated three months of marriage. The perfect way for a programmer with a mind for finance and an accountant to augment the occasion was, of course, a quarterly meeting. It may sound crazy, but this is our first step in always making our marriage a priority. Here’s how quarterly meetings foster open and honest communication while strengthening our relationship…

Dana & Sheldon: From BBQ fountain to house fires and big changes

You might remember Dana and Sheldon as the librarian couple with the BBQ fountain at their wedding. Let’s check in with them now that three years have gone by, and they’re rebuilding their home after a house fire!

Luke & Suzanne: from Muppet wedding to writing and grad school

The past three years for us can be summed up in one word: writing. I finished my doctorate at USC, recently accepted a job as an Assistant Professor of Film and Media Studies at ASU, and I’m working on my transforming my dissertation into a book. Luke was accepted to the Clarion Writers Workshop last summer, and has been writing his first science fiction novel. Personally, things remain pretty much the same as pre-wedding. The bliss is now officially categorized as “marital,” but we’re still living in Echo Park with our cat, Penny, and getting into spirited debates about all things geek culture.

Trisha & Matthew: from DIY wedding to dream jobs that actually aren’t

We’re adding a new series on Offbeat Home & Life called “Where Are They Now?” where we catch up with the couples from Offbeat Bride profiles past. First up is Trisha & Matt whom you may remember from their adorable DIY wedding in California.

Ask Me Anything: I’m a young widow now remarried

Whether it is about being a young widow, loss of a loved one, moving on after a relationship ends, survivor’s guilt, the paperwork of death, how to help a loved one who is going through a loss, when support will be most well-received by the grieving, or even how dating in my early thirties was different than in my early twenties, ASK ME ANYTHING!

Blending work, home, and marriage: How to work with your spouse

I finally finished my PhD and found myself at a loose end. My husband Jamie was wrapping up his own project and he made a proposal: why not work on an iPad word game idea together? So in a week we had a working prototype and we thought hey, this could work; we can always quit if it doesn’t. That first week of working together gradually became months as our daily lives melded work, home, and marriage. Along the way I learned a few things, through trial and error, that made working with a spouse easier…

How we’re renegotiating our marriage with our yearly “relationship summit”

For our anniversary we have our “relationship summit” or our “State Of The Union” address, where we renegotiated our marriage each year. We talk about where we are and what we want and if changes need to be made. But what’s more important is the time when we come to “I want to stay married to you for another year.” Here’s how it works…