The 7 Keys To A Happy Wife By Frank Lodato

1. Separate from Mamma. – Men, you are married to your wife, not your mom! When family matters invade a marriage, your wife needs to trust that you and she are a united front. She must not fear that you will go behind her and talk negatively, especially to your mom.

When you and your wife speak to your mom, it should be as one flesh, not competing teams. Your mom is usually going to fight in your corner, right or wrong. This will cause serious problems in your marriage. I love my mom and she is precious to me, but YOU leading your family is the best way to honor her, not the other way around.

10 Marriage Tips Every WIFE Needs to Hear - And It's From A Twice-Divorced Woman

I wanted to take some time and write down some things that I’ve learned in the last ten years.  You see – I’m now in my third marriage.

When people learn this fact about me, their reaction is usually pretty awkward.  It’s almost as if they’re waiting for me to be embarrassed by my admission.

While going through two divorces was some of the most painful times of my life, I’d only feel ashamed if I’d gone through it without being able to say I’ve learned a thing or two.  My husband and I had both been through divorce before we married each other, and with that brings a unique perspective into many do’s and don’ts of how to treat your spouse.

Oldest Living Black Couple Married 86 Years Offers Advice - Marry a Good Man

Meet Herbert and Zelmyra Fisher of North Carolina. They have been married 86 years and hold the Guinness World Record for the longest marriage of a living couple and get this…. Zelmyra is 101 years old and Herbert is 104.

The happily married couple answered some relationship questions. Check out their take on finding love, getting through hard times and more. Good read.

1. What made you realize that you could spend the rest of your lives together? Were you scared at all?
H & Z: With each day that passed, our relationship was more solid and secure.Divorce was NEVER an option – or even a thought.

Fall in Love For Life - 7 Tips From a Marriage of 73 Years

After 73 years of marriage, 94-year old Barbara Cooper knows how to get through matrimony’s rough patches. The author of Fall in Love for Life shares her hard-earned wisdom.

Tiwa, Toke and Toolz in Braids - Is This Wife Material Hairstyle?

So as I was writing up Toke's recent vlog about wife material syndrome - how women begin to show they're ready for the proposal or marriage when in a serious relationship - I realized something. Toke had a hairstyle in common with a couple of other ladies whom I had profiled as being in a relationship or engaged. Both Tiwa Savage (engaged to T-Billz) and Toolz Oniru (Coupled up with Tunde Demuren) are currently rocking braids.

4 Tips To Maintain A Supportive Relationship

Some women often find that as their careers take off or when they decided to delve into their passion as a business, their relationships take a hit. They either find that their husbands and/or partners are not as supportive as they used to be.

This could either be true from the man's ego and insecurities acting up, or it could be that the woman has changed as the career or business thrives, taking her attention away from her family and thereby affecting the dynamics of her relationship with her man. Below are some tips to help to maintain balance in such a situation.

Alero Roberts on Marriage - Marry your Friend

Being a doctor, wife, mother, teacher, relationship expert and columnist with Genevieve magazine, Dr Alero proves that love, understanding, patience and wisdom are the basics for maintaining a good marriage.

Definition of Marriage: For me, marriage is exactly what the Manufacturer planned it to be: there’s the man and then the wife, who is designed to be a ‘help-mate’ for the man she marries. Think of the head and neck relationship; he’s the head and she’s the neck, separate yet inseparable, distinctly different and yet inextricably intertwined. He’s the leader but she gives him permission to lead and shows him where to lead.

How they Met: I met my husband Dr Seyi Roberts in ward A2 at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) on the morning of Monday, 8th of November, 1982. It was a consultant’s ward round and it was my first day of Neurology posting. He was a senior registrar just returned from his year’s training in Harvard. It was sparks all the way! I thought he was an over-rated, arrogant, bumptious creep and he thought I was a little miss ‘know-it-all’, too big for my boots!

Betty Irabor on Marriage - It takes Two

Being the Editor-in-chief of one of the largest selling magazines in Nigeria isn’t Betty’s greatest achievement; nabbing one of the best men in the world, giving him children and keeping her family together is.

On her Wedding Day: My wedding day was the happiest day of my life! All my sisters and friends were around to assist me in planning; it was a lot of fun. Thinking about it now, I remember feeling a bit of the wedding jitters, mostly because I was told one of Soni’s ex girls was planning to ‘storm’ the wedding; she ended up not showing up and it turned out to be the very perfect day.

Funnily enough, my wedding dress gave me a headache because the blouse just did not sit right. It had a funny shape and people kept adjusting it for me but I kept telling them it was the style. It cost me less than N30,000 which included shoes, bag and other extras. I no longer have it, but Sonia my daughter, would not have appreciated it if I passed it to her anyway.

The Magic of Marriage by Nena Ndioma

The Sunday School topic at church yesterday centered on marriage. As the lesson progressed in the young adults class, I could see the longing in the young people’s eyes for an uncomplicated answer, an easy way toward ensuring they ended up with the right life partner – one who would ensure they maintained a joyful married life; one who would be there for the long-haul.

I explained that the solution lies in a combination of prayer and practicality. Prayer for God’s guidance and wisdom is essential, but after praying, you have to do your due diligence, using the wisdom He has given. You have to accept the guidance that He makes available (by not ignoring the red flags He shows you because you’re too much ‘in love’; by being open to listen to the impressions of others that have loved you and known you much longer than your suitor has, etc.).

Ultimately, you have to know how God speaks to you way before marriage – and you have to listen to what He impresses upon you when marriage time comes around – rather than ignore His voice and assume everything will turn out okay just because you ‘prayed’ and just because you’re a Christian.

Joke Silva on Marriage - The Man can be Vulnerable too

Over the next few weeks as December wedding season progresses, I'll be running a series first featured on Genevieve Magazine about three friends, three weddings and three marriages of 20+ years. I'll start off with Joke Silva, that doyen of the Nigerian movie industry, and her husband, actor, Olu Jacobs.

The Proposal: Olu and I dated for a couple of years before we got married. I remember he proposed when we went for dinner and a Greek meal was served. I think he got the people in the restaurant involved in the whole arrangement; oh…it was just so romantic! He was living in England at the time though, so that was their custom and he was used to it.

The first years of the relationship: When I first met Olu, he was this dashing guy. He was just such incredible fun! We got along very well. I didn’t even know his age; I thought maybe he was in his late twenties, early thirties. I screamed when I found out his age. He was 39 and I was 20! Well, eventually it was my mum who gave me the go ahead because she saw how serious I was with him and hadn’t seen me that serious with anyone. My dad was worried about the age difference but my mum was able to make him see reasons. She also had the background of her mum being much younger than her dad and didn’t really see a problem with it. She felt it was something I could handle.

Doing Things Together as a Couple

By Nkem Akinsoto

One of the advice given to new couples is to do things together, and even where they have busy schedules, they are encouraged to make time to spend together. When Atala and I got married, he was living in the United States and as we agreed, I had rounded off my stay of three years in the UK in plans to move continents. Luckily, I was able to get my US visa and join him about a month later.

When I arrived, it was March, and if you've heard of Seattle, you've probably heard wet, cloudy, or evergreen in the same sentence. Spring in Seattle is the poster child for dull and depressing weather and that was when I arrived. Add to that fact, I had no job at first and also did not have an American driving license. You can measure my desire to get time outside of the house as well as spend time with my brand new husband.

Boris Kodjoe and Nicole Parker on Love and Family

Boris Kodjoe and his wife, Nicole Ari Parker are a celebrity couple that are still going strong after seven years and two children. In a recent interview with RollingOut.com, they shared about their life, their marriage, and how they parent their children. I have such a huge crush on Boris Kudjoe and have written about him in celebrity crushes and as an inspiration for a male character in my work in progress. Reading this interview, I was happy for him and his wife, and equally learnt a few things. Hope you do too...

You’ve both been keeping incredibly demanding schedules. Can you fill us in on what you’ve been up to?

Nicole: Well, I just finished a sixteen-week run making my debut on Broadway. I just closed A Street Car Named Desire on July 22, and then I took a much-needed family vacation with Boris and the kids. Being away from home was tough, but the challenge and the thrill of being on Broadway was so fulfilling, and I’m thankful to my husband for making it possible and holding it down at home.

Was it all pleasure? Did you get a chance to see any extended family while you were gone?

Nicole:  We just got back from Germany seeing Boris’ grandmother. Now in a couple of weeks, I’m off to London to do the run of the play on the West End, so that is also very exciting.  I play the character Blanche, and I am fortunate to be the first African-American to play that part. So I’ve really enjoyed my time with this experience.

And what about you Boris?

Boris: I’ve been at home with the kids. I’ve been driving them to surf camp, making sure that they are at ballet and karate, and just doing everything that I’m supposed to do as a father. I’ve also been prepping for my directorial debut. It’s a film called Looking For Jimmy Lee, and I’m really looking forward to that.

Nse Ikpe on Friendship, Finding a Man and Hobbies

Nse Etim Ikpe is a nollywood actress and has been nominated and won some awards that prove how good she is. She features in a lot of the new nollywood movies and in a recent interview, she talked about what she thinks about friends and friendship, her adventures in finding a man, and some of her hobbies. Enjoy...

Halle Berry, Low Self Esteem and Bad Choices in Men

Some of us often ask why a woman in an unhealthy relationship remains in it. As much as we don't know her partner as she does, and maybe he does need help, first of all however, the victim has to realize her self-worth in order to begin to understand that she needs to withdraw from that relationship and save herself before she can worry about her partner and what he needs. [see post on Rihanna still loves Chris Brown]

Eldee on Love, Marriage, Family and Celebrity

Lanre Dabiri, or eLDee the Don as he is more popularly known, is a Nigerian music star and was featured on the BN weekend interview where he spoke about his marriage and family. I was intrigued enough to want to know more. I found that BN had also covered his wedding and I was impressed enough by their story to share.

The Ticking Biological Clock

If all the talk one hears is to be believed, most women have their biological clock start ticking once they hit puberty. At the most, you block your ears to it until you're thirty, and then BAM, it smacks you in the face. To be honest, mine has been quite muted if it's been ticking at all.

7 Things to Work on Before You Say Yes or I do

The other day, we were discussing the best age to get married. The consensus is that there's no set age because people are different. What is more important is that one has experienced life as an independent individual, is mature, and knows what marriage is all about. Marriage is about love and sex, but it is also about the future, working together with another person to help each other be the best you can be, both personally and as people in a community. Most couples also hope to have children and so one has to think about that too.

Should couples use the same Bedroom or Separate?

Atala and I share the same bedroom and bathroom and I can't even imagine having to use separate ones in the near future. But I know that lack of privacy has been identified as one of the reasons strain develop in some marriages, and if an individual had their own space to get a good sleep, or just do them in peace, they may be more amenable when working on other issues. And some people can be so messy, it gets on their partner's last nerves.

Dear Myne, How can I leave him after 5 Years?

I met my fiance during my first week at university. I had just started attending a private Christian school, one of the best in the country and some of my friends and family members advised me to look out for good young men who were marriage material. That day we met, I was having some problems during my registration and he was one of those helping us. When we struck up a friendship after that, I was so happy to have met such an smart, interesting and best of all, Christian guy so soon.

10 Signs Your Boo is Ready to Get Married

It is not often that I share posts from women's magazine's like Cosmo because I find that most of the advice in some of their articles is very cookie-cutter. I am usually of the opinion there's no one size fits all in relationships, and everyone has to study the one they're with to know what will work or not. But I saw this article and felt some of the listed tips were generally true.