I have my meals planned this week. But rather than posting my plan (it's just pasta Monday, fish Tuesday, meatless on Wednesday, frozen leftovers on Thursday), I thought I'd post my rationale for eating together.  When I was out walking recently, my daughter Katie said to me, "You know what I like about our family, Mommy? We eat together. It's...

One of the most difficult parts of marriage is agreeing how to discipline. When one parent is more lenient, and one is more harsh, often parents fail to back each other up, and instead form emotional bonds with the kids. Here's a situation that happened in our family recently: One of our daughters, who had been very compliant, hit puberty, and...

Take a moment to think about your financial habits – good and bad. Do they mirror things your parents did? Was your father a diligent saver who was certain to be ready for that “rainy day”? Or did your family value new things, even if it meant going into debt? Understanding the origin of your financial habits and values can help you to get...

What one gift that everyone wants? The gift of time. Time is the main ingredient in building lasting relationships. Your time is a gift you can give your spouse every day. My goal for this month is to learn more about my husband. My relationship with my husband is an important one. I’m constantly reminding myself of that and the importance of...

Today, the number of credit cards in Canada had grown to almost 65 million while the value of annual purchases made with credit cards increased more than ten times. The hard truth: More credit cards mean more credit card debt per person. Many Canadians are swamped by their monthly credit card obligations. Credit card debt is painful because often...

Are you called or are you driven? Do you feel like your life is out of control, or can you peacefully move forward, knowing God is leading? I want to look at that question in relation to our finances. But before we do that, look at this picture of a house: Small, isn't it? And yet the majority of North American families in the 1950s lived in something...

Serious debt problems arise when the amount you owe is out of balance with your income and household expenses (such as mortgage payments and utilities). The primary aim of managing your debt is to restore the balance either by increasing your income – difficult to achieve in an economic downturn – or setting and following a plan of...