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Marriage and relationships can be the most beautiful and fulfilling commitment in life.  When you have a strong and fulfilling marriage it can make life and situations that one must go through so much easier because you have that support from the other person.  What really makes a relationship though?  What are the key factors that make a strong relationship that can withstand the test of time?  Well that is debatable to many.

What is important to one couple or person for that matter, might be completely different from the next.  A successful marriage is about both having the same key factors that are important to both parties involved.  But sometimes over time, with growing and learning, those factors might change for individuals.  So how does one keep that from happening to preserve their marriage.  Communication is key.  Just like any relationship, whether it be work, friendship, family or a romantic relationship, without good, quality communication it is doomed to fail.

As a mother communication can be one of the hardest things to keep up with because of all the obligations that you have with such a job.  Being a busy mom can strain even the strongest of relationships.  Communicating with my spouse, I must admit, is not the easiest thing in the world to do.  Trying to listen to your husband over the loud screams of children, or while concentrating on the many pots you have on the stove because you are trying to prepare dinner on time,  while going over what you need to get at the grocery store, or even while you are trying to listen to the TV to hear  Kim Kardashian talk about why she left Kris Humphries (I am still trying to figure out that one) is not easy at all.   But there is hope!  From my experiences it seems that most couples divorce or have the most problems when they have kids especially around the toddler ages.  Kids can make it tough on marriages and relationships but of course it isn’t on purpose.  It is our responsibility as parents to get through the “rocky stages” of our marriage.  Here is some advice I can offer to a busy mother that might be going through this.

1)      Set aside time alone with the hubby after the kids go to sleep.  This is especially hard for me because when the kids go to sleep, I want to too!  But believe me it works.  During the day, you might just want to write down things you would like to talk to your hubby about.   With mommy brain, you will probably have to write everything down anyways.

2)      On days that you don’t have anything to talk about, play a board game or do something fun.  This is good because these type situations are good “lead ins” to stories about the past or just learning something you didn’t know about the other person.  Doing something fun is always good to opening the communication channels.