we don't communicate with our mouths

Did you know that verbal communication only makes up 14% of the message we interpret when talking with someone?  35% of the message is the tone taken while saying those words.  What could the last 51% be referring to?  NON-VERBAL communication.  Non-verbals are things like body language, thoughts and feelings, and the media.  This is why texting is one of my least favorite things to do.  When the recipient is reading that message, they're only getting 14% of the intended thought.  All this encoding and decoding take place to understand the real meaning of the messages we are trying to send.  I don't know about you but sometimes this can be really exhausted!  I just want to get my thoughts across without everyone reading into them to try to find that hidden meaning.  Is there a solution to this?  You're thoughts are as good as mine!  I hope that there can be a way to stop this.  I think the best way is so share out real meaning and intents.  No beating around the bush, we should just be straight-forward, in a respectful way.

it's all in your head

Life is crazy.  Things happen all the time that we weren't ready for, or never thought would happen to us.  So the question is, how are we going to react to them?  We can turn situations into stressful ones that affect us the rest of our lives, or we can learn to have positive and helpful thoughts that could potentially turn "defining moments" in our life to "passing waves."  If we have negative thoughts about a situation or even a person, we need to take a step back and look at the reality of the situation.  After we do that, (grasp reality) then we will be able to take on the world with more self confidence than ever before. Let's all try it!  Because I know this is something that none of us are perfect at.

marital intimacy...

So I have to admit, I am a couple weeks behind in the wonderful world of blogging.  But this particular post is going to be about, you guessed it!  Sexuality and intimacy.  Fun facts... Did you know that women like to feel safe before they're going to want to have any kind of sexual intimacy from their partner?  Did you know that men like to be sexually intimate and only then can they gain that safety and security?  Interesting isn't it?  How then, you might ask, does it all work out?  Well I've learned that in order for the intimate experience to be the best for both husband and wife, it's all about making the experience a selfless one.  If you and your partner are truly attentive to each other's needs and experiences, then it will be much more fulfilling.  Last but not least, don't feel like you have to rush into anything.  Take it at your own pace on your own time.

marriage... let's talk about it

Many people are under the impression that marriage it happy, easy, and virtually problem free.  I'm here to tell you that those people are very wrong.  I'm not saying that marriage sucks and that it's not worth it.  I think it's amazing and wonderful, but it's also a lot of hard work.  I probably won't be able to fully comprehend that until I'm married myself.  But, I know it's true.  There are some common problems the first month of marriage that can be avoided with one simple solution: talking about it!  More often than not couples forget to talk about important things before they tie the knot.  These things include: meals, transportation, money, daily routines, and talking to family back home to name a few.  If you and your fiance talk about your future life together and what you expect, then there won't be as many surprises, arguments, and unsolved (normally simple) dilemmas. Moral of the story, talk it out when you're engaged even if it seems simple.  It's worth it!