“Celestial marriage is the crowning ordinance of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  There is no ordinance connected with the Gospel of Jesus Christ of greater importance, or more solemn and sacred nature, and more necessary to our eternal joy … than marriage.” 

 Joseph Fielding Smith – Prophet and President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from 1970-1972.

Hi Everyone!  My name is Anna and I live in Morgan Utah.  My husband Michael and I have been married for 18 years.  This is us last year, sitting in front of the apartment we met at in Rexburg, Idaho.  We have three children: Adam who is 16, Molly who is 13, and Lily who is 8.

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Growing up my mom was more dominant than my dad.  My dad was an active Naval officer, and he was gone a lot.  He also went on many tours of duty where he was gone for a year or more at a time.  My mom learned to be very independent and self-sufficient, and with eight kids she had to be!  

I learned a lot from my parent’s marriage – a lot good – and some not so good.  My mom kept up her same routines even when my dad came home.  She didn’t let him contribute much to the everyday run of the house. 

My dad was so patient and mostly just went with the flow of “mom’s way”, because he loved her.  He was very much aware of how much my mom did, day in and day out.  He let her know that he was grateful for all she did by the way he treated her.  I don’t think my mom fully realized how hard being in the Navy was for my dad.  She didn’t let him know that she was grateful for all he did – she could only see her own suffering.

I learned from my mom and dad’s example.  In my own marriage I have shown how grateful I am to Michael, despite my own struggles.  I make sure I tell him often “thank you for going to work today”, “I appreciate all you do for our children”, or “thank you so much for doing the dishes”.  My attitude of gratitude has made Michael do more, and return a lot of gratitude back to me. 

Gratitude is just one of the essential elements in my marriage.  Fierce loyalty, overriding commitment, selfless service, and compassionate service are just some of the elements that are necessary for a successful marriage.

The following is a list taken from Tudie Rose’s blog (http://ldsblogs.com/26543/26543).  These are some of the elements that she pointed out for a successful marriage.

· Develop Mutual Respect

· Total Loyalty & Fidelity

· Appreciation—Don’t Take Your Marriage for Granted

· Be a Thankful Spouse

· Be Best Friends

· Communicate Effectively, Fight Fair, and Resolve Differences

· Keep Perspective in All Trials

· Remember the Power of Touch

· Remember to Laugh and Have Fun

· Be Each Other’s Therapist

· Be Financially Responsible   

· Pray, Contemplate, and Work Together

· Be Kind

· Date Frequently & Enjoy the Outdoors Together Occasionally

· Serve Together

· Be Patient in Intimacy

· Pull Together Through Adversity; Don’t Pull Apart

· Be Patient through Illness and Old Age

· Build Your Partner’s Self-Esteem

· Develop Family Traditions  

· Generate Happiness; Don’t Just Consume It

· Be Selfless and Sacrifice

· Make Eternal Marriage and Family Top Priority

Over the course of the next several months I hope to offer insight and helps on a lot of these topics. I want to offer help to strengthen marriages and families.