Articles by: Ronnie Tyler

Learn to relax instead of react.

How to fuse your parenting styles and avoid drama.

Discipline can be a point of contention in a blended family. Differences in parenting styles can literally make a couple split -- if you don't take measures to build strong relationships and to ensure that your marriage bond is strong. When Lamar and I were engaged, I got my first glimpse of this step-family dynamic. We had an argument about how I disciplined my kids. I can't even remember exactly what we argued about, but I remember he said the word "ridiculous" and he also said the words "You need to..."

My daughter was going through the motions. She said her grace before every meal, without any thought to what it meant and probably not really being thankful for the meal. It was just a part of her routine. This made me reflect on the many ways we can just go through the motions in our daily lives. For instance, how about at church? Are you just going to church just to say that you went to church on Sunday...

We're all human... chances are you have been through something, you've had trials or you've been tested. And you have survived to become the person that you are today. So what's your testimony? And are you willing to share it? Many people are not so willing to share their testimony. They may be carrying around shame, hurt or embarrassment. And let's face it... people can be so judgmental...

We did it together and it felt good! Last weekend we finally cleaned out our garage, after being in this home for almost three months now. And we had so much fun working together... we were a real team. We even had a hula hoop contest and I won! That may not seem like a big deal to you, but my husband beats me at most contests. So I was happy to find out that he sucks on the hula hoop...