Relationship
How to make your man feel special
Repair the broken item for him
Fix something for him, so the repair doesn’t require him to endure the hassle of doing it himself. It doesn’t need to be anything major such as getting the brakes on his car. The fix could be as easy as having that drill repaired or replacing the damaged battery of the watch.
As men are known to forget all the tasks they have to do at the final minute, he’ll be grateful to you for doing the work for him, because despite having to, he is aware that he’ll never complete everything he’s got to. In addition, he’ll be thinking of you each time he makes use of the things you’ve repaired for him and boast about the competent and trustworthy girlfriend you are to all his buddies.
Make him feel special by inviting him on a date
It’s typically him who surprises you with new date ideas, So why not try to surprise him? Both of you have been working all week, and when the weekend comes around and you can turn his invitation to dinner at an expensive hotel off and instead invite him to your home to eat dinner.
Do not inform him of your plans beforehand and let him be caught completely off guard by the efforts you put into planning an unforgettable evening with great food, candles, and his favourite music.
Buy him flowers
Another reason is why it has to be that he showers you with presents and flowers? You can break the tradition by taking flowers to him personally or any other type of plant that can ease some tension and bring it to his office. Men love flowers- they also have a sense of scent (no matter how they are).
Bring food to him in his home
Nothing says “I love you” more than as much as steaming Papa John’s pizza, or buying an ice bucket filled with his favourite flavour of Ben & Jerry’sV, because haven’t we all ever heard of it? The path to a man’s heart lies through the stomach.
Make sure to find something on his bucket list and do it for him
We all had bucket lists as children that we never got around to finishing, so find the one you have and then set your sights to achieve something. For instance, you could watch the sunset or lie in the night with him. He’ll not forget going the extra mile to achieve something you wanted to do badly.
Find the ingredients for his most-loved cocktail and have them waiting when he returns home
Sometimes just a drink will suffice to relax and let his mind drift off after a tiring working day. And his preferred drink can make the experience more enjoyable.
Take a day off
A day or two later, without reason whatsoever, you’ll take a sick call and encourage him to take a sick call also so that both of you can have a day watching films together, eating food at a restaurant, and spending time with each other.
Write him a note
Make notes to him and put them in his pocket or in his day planner so that he can locate them later and be reminded of the person who wrote them. As cheesy as it sounds, however, the right words could assist him in navigating difficult days.
Source: www.dreamyhub.com
Parenting teens can be challenging. But it can also be a joy. The key is to know how to care for yourself, first and foremost. Before you have children, you might think that parenting will come naturally. And, to some degree, it does. But there are days (and sometimes months and years) when all parents could use some extra support.
Last week we looked at some four simple yet powerful approaches for parenting teens that build strong relationships for the long-run. Here are the remaining two:
4: Keep communication going
Because we are often busy and distracted, we do not always take the time to really focus on our kids when they’re trying to tell us something. Take advantage of the time you have together. Having dinner together as a family, using car time to talk, or chatting before bed are good ways to stay in daily touch with your teen. Prioritise quality time as well as quantity: Consider having breakfast out on the weekend as a special catch-up time to chat about the week. Or schedule monthly “family meetings” to discuss how things have been going and any conflicts that have arisen.
5. Be an empathetic listener
Listening with empathy and caring is one of the most important tips on parenting a teenager. Researchers have shown that people’s brain patterns synchronise when they listen closely to one another and watch each other’s expressions. As a result, the connection between them becomes stronger. Not feeling truly heard can lead to isolation and lack of self-esteem which are the root causes of anxiety, depression, and substance abuse. Therefore, take listening seriously. It’s not just a way of coping with teenagers; it has an enormous impact on their well-being.
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SHE did not find out he was cheating. She found out he was drowning.
It was two weeks after their beautiful wedding. The jollof was still in the fridge. A loan officer called her number—not his—and politely asked, “Madam, please tell your husband to pay his overdue loan. We have been calling him.”
That was how she discovered her new husband had entered their marriage with a hidden debt of over GH¢40,000. No cheating. No other woman. Just a financial secret.
And that is how many Ghanaian marriages begin to die. Not with a shout, but with a secret alert on a phone.
In my therapy/counselling office in Accra, week after week, I sit with couples whose marriages are not broken by infidelity, but by invoices. If you ask me what is quietly killing Ghanaian marriages today, I will tell you without blinking: it is not that love has died; it is that money honesty never lived.
We prepare for the wedding. We do not prepare for the wallet.
What is money honesty?
Let me define it simply. Money honesty is not that you both earn the same. It is that you both know the same. It is the ability to sit down and say without fear:
“This is how much I earn.”
“This is how much I owe.”
“This is how I was raised to see money.”
“This is what scares me about money.”
Financial transparency is not about control. It is about clarity. You cannot build trust on top of secrets.
Many couples tell me, “Counselor, we love each other, love will handle money.” I always answer, “Love is the car, but money honesty is the fuel. Love without honesty cannot move.”
Why do Ghanaian partners hide money?
From my clinical observation, it is not always wickedness. It is often woundedness.
1. The fear of losing power: Especially for men, money is seen as power. “If she knows how much I have, she will control me or disrespect me.” So he hides.
2. Family entanglement: “If my wife knows I give my mother GH¢1,500 every month, there will be trouble.” So he creates a second MoMo account. Many Ghanaian marriages have three accounts—his, hers, and the secret family one.
3. Past trauma: A woman who grew up in a home where her mother begged for chop money will never be honest about her savings. She is not greedy. She is scared. She is saving for her survival.
4. Debt shame: In Ghana today, with easy access to Qwikloan, Fido, and bank salary loans, many young men and women enter marriage already drowning in debt. They hide it because they feel, “If I tell him/her, they won’t marry me.”
So the hiding begins. And that is where the insurance lapses.
The 3 Devastating Prices You Pay For Financial Secrecy
Research from Kansas State University found that arguments about money are the number one predictor of divorce, more than arguments about children, in-laws, or sex. Why? Because money arguments are never about money. They are about trust, respect, and security.
Price 1: It destroys trust faster than infidelity.
When you discover your spouse has a secret child, you are hurt. When you discover your spouse has a secret debt that loan officers are now chasing YOU for, you feel betrayed and foolish. Clients tell me, “Counselor, I can forgive cheating, but I cannot forgive that he made me look like a fool at the bank.”
Price 2: It creates chronic anxiety in your home.
A home where money is a mystery is a home where no one sleeps well. The wife is always checking his phone not for other women, but for loan alerts. The husband is always anxious when his wife says, “Can we talk?” You cannot have intimacy where there is financial anxiety.
Price 3: It teaches your children to lie.
Children are watching. When daddy says, “Tell anyone who calls that I am not around because of money,” you are teaching your son that lying about money is normal. We are raising a generation of financially dishonest partners.
