Kendra loved the new apartment. Situated in a maze of several hundred units—this one was theirs alone. Her youthful dream was finally being realized. As she unpacked the stack of boxes, it was a blend of their former lives.

Her boxes had clothes, dishes, and a collection of treasures stretching back to her early teens. For him, there were just the male essentials—clothes, TV, sound system, game console, and a large collection of DVDs. She shook her head at the scrappy collection of cast-off furniture crammed in their tiny living space.

They’d excitedly set up the bed first thing. Living together meant no more nights apart. She shivered with anticipation thinking about all the time they’d have with each other. As she unpacked her dishes, pots and pans, she imagined dinners prepared in the tiny kitchen and long evenings with just the two of them.

Like thousands of couples across America, they’d co-signed a lease together, but didn’t bother with the marriage certificate. Over the last fifty years, cohabitation has increased 1500%.

Living together is perceived to be like training wheels on a bike. Get your balance. See how smooth the ride is. It’s the post-modern way to be protected from marital failure—kind of like a condom to prevent a divorce. FULL POST

This opinion column originally appeared in townhall.com on 5/23/2013.

Author: Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Legal Counsel Doug Napier

For years, Iowa law relied on a rather reasonable bit of biological reality: it takes a man and a woman to make a baby. From that fact, the state reasoned that for questions of paternity, the answer would involve someone commonly called a “father.” So when the state recorded births as a matter of public record, it (rather logically) looked for a man as the non-birth parent.

As reasonable as that may seem, in the brave new world of “marriage equality” it is now “prejudicial” for state officials to ask this simple “who’s your daddy?” question.

Read full column.

We just got back from a two hour recital in which five of my eight children played several piano pieces. They are at different levels and enjoy different kinds of music but as I sat back and listened I reflected on all the years ( we started with piano lessons over ten years ago when the eldest was six) and all the frustration, and all the hard work, which brought them to where they are now I am frankly amazed. I often wondered if their musical skills would ever add up to anything…and with every recital I am reaffirmed that we did the right thing in sticking to it.This year my husband has been very sick dealing with Graph vs Host Disease and then skin cancer, thus we’ve had a host of things to deal with…including keeping on schedule with all the school work. Sometimes, when I am exhausted and thus irritated, I begin to wonder..am I doing the right thing? Does all this really matter? I could send my kids off to some “other” school and save myself a lot of work. I could cancel the music lessons and save myself some money and frustration. But then I can’t help but adding…and we could get rid of the animals and the garden….hey….why did I have kids in the first place? My life would certainly be easier if I only had myself and my husband to take care of. And then, before you know it, I am wondering why I don’t just jettison him into the world of “I need to take care of myself now”. In truth…I could toss every relationship, every skill, everything worth doing off my shoulders and live in self centered minimalist approach to life. FULL POST

Imagine yourself as a single mom with three young children. Your doctor discovers a health issue that requires surgery and a hospital stay. Your parents live in another state and both work. You have a few friends, but none close enough that you’d consider asking them to take care of your children while you’re in the hospital. As the date approaches for your surgery, you become desperate. Who’s going to watch your children?

That’s what Stephanie wondered, until she heard about Safe Families for Children^TM (SFFC). Through this national movement, Stephanie’s three children were taken in by a wonderful Christian couple in her city. A month after her surgery, Stephanie and her children were back together again.

“If it wasn’t for Safe Families [for Children], I don’t know what I would have done,” Stephanie told a local reporter. “I think the State would have taken my children.”

Safe Families for Children is a national movement of compassion that gives hope to families in crisis. Safe, loving homes are provided where parents seek to restore stability in their lives. Safe Families for Children has partnered with churches, local community agencies, and volunteer families, as well as government organizations in more than a dozen states. FULL POST

By Ron Edmondson

I previously posted 10 Things I’d Do If Raising a Daughter Today. In this post, I will focus on the boys.

I know a little more about this subject, having two incredible sons of my own. But, we always look at life differently from the other side of it. My boys are grown. I’m still parenting, but in a completely different way. Mine now is one of influence. Thankfully, both boys still come to me for that influence. There is no greater joy than seeing boys become God-honoring young men. I’m thankful to have a front row seat with my sons.

But, even with the incredible young men I know as sons, there are things I would do differently if I had that part of life to do over again. I know boys become men. And, every man I know, whether or not he admits it, struggles at some level with confidence. He struggles to know he is enough, that he can do what God calls him to do. Every man is desperate for someone to believe in him.

And, sadly, we are living in the age where the absentee father is the normal. It once was the exception. (That’s the subject of another post, but it’s plaguing our society. Check any statistics.) FULL POST