EW's Wedding Channel! Pardon our dust as we build Exploring Womanhood's newest channel. To get you started, check out these wonderful articles! Also . . . Ask Allee ~ Introducting Exploring Womanhood's very own Ask Allee. Allee is a certified wedding and events planner available to answer your event planning questions and concerns in this online column. Twelve questions and answers have been posted!

"PASS OR FAIL" - Strengthen Your Marriage with a Simple Daily Exercise Is it easier to smile at strangers some days than at your special person at home? If you want a better relationship with your spouse, you need to practice all day, every day, with total strangers. Winn Claybaugh explains how.

Change Your Language, Change Your Relationship: How We Say Things Does Matter Words and how we say them do matter, so it's very important to be careful how you speak to your partner and others. The misuse and carelessness of how you speak are two of the main issues that undermine and can eventually destroy a relationship. Learn more from marriage and family therapist Sharon Rivkin.

You've Gotta Get Back in to Get Back Out: Leaving a Relationship Is Hard To Do One of the hardest tasks we face in a relationship is leaving. A more difficult undertaking is staying out. Learn more from Marriage and Family Therapist Sharon M. Rivkin.

Everybody Loves Raymond But Hates His Parents While most of us cringe whenever Raymond's mother, Marie, manipulates everyone with guilt, we don't realize that Raymond is the one who allows her to have such a destructive effect on his marriage. If you are married to a "Raymond," then here are five things you can do to gain his loyalty.

Breast Cancer: How to Be a Long Distance Friend What should a friend, far-away, do when their friend has cancer? Ruth Haag shares her special experience and love of her friend Nancy.

How Loved Ones Can Help in a Medical Crisis When dealing with a serious medical problem, you have to realize that your condition is going to have an impact on everyone around you and that it will be toughest on the one you love. Learn how to work together from Steven Hefferon, CMT, PTA.

How to Have Greater Conversations with Your "Greatest Generation" Parent When it comes to helping our parents' record their life stories, there's no time like the present and no better gift to the future.

Changing Friendships in Midlife: How Exercise can Clarify Confusion When you reach age forty, your needs for companionship may change drastically from when you were younger. You may require more honesty and dependability or you may be uncertain about what you need in a friend. Exercising while focusing on your friendship issues can help you clarify confusion that you are experiencing.

Elder Abuse: a Deepening Current Social Issue Preventing Elder Abuse Is a Question of Education, Ethics and Morality To persons of good will it is hard to understand what kind of person would abuse the elderly. Bullies actively seek out vulnerability and gains gratification provoking arguments and increasing hostility. Some even take pleasure in inflicting physical harm. There are signs you can watch for . . .

Coping With a Difficult Former Spouse as You Co-Parent Consider that this co-parenting situation with your former spouse is a spiritual test. The immediate goal is to resolve the current issue, but the ultimate goal is to walk away from any interaction no matter how unpleasant with a greater connection to your soul. Author Michele Germain explains how.

Fighting Fair: Three Rules to Keep in Mind Shakespeare's oft-quoted line, "All's fair in love and war," may be true, but it shouldn't be interpreted as license to do whatever we feel like-at least not if having a happy marriage is our goal. If you want to be happily wed, you will need to establish and follow some basic ground rules for resolving your differences. We might call this Fighting Fair.

One Magic Strategy for Your Relationship Whether you are in a happy time with your partner right now or experiencing stress, there is one powerful, easy strategy you can use by yourself to create a more pleasant atmosphere in your home, almost instantly! Learn more from author Susan Page.

Moving Mom and Dad Helping your parents move from the home they have lived in for many years is difficult. Making this transition is not easy, but it can be manageable if you keep these things in mind.

Strategies to Cope with Anger After Divorce Unresolved and misdirected anger can keep the heart closed, the body tense and the mind chaotic. Spiritually you can feel lost and become disconnected from your deepest self - your soul. Therefore, it is critical to understand and work with your anger in an appropriate way allowing your body, heart and mind to be in an open peaceful state.

Help Make It STOP! Surviving Domestic Violence October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Battering is a way for one person in a relationship to establish control over another person. It can occur within every socio-economic group and knows no boundaries. The types of abuse can vary from emotional/mental abuse to physical/financial abuse. The types of abuse are varied, but the affects are the same. The victim is de-humanized, their self-esteem is shattered, and are typically scared into in-action. Learn what you can do to stop the abuse NOW!

Maintaining a Healthy and Loving Relationship Most of us want to fall in love, be in love and stay in love and magically live happily ever after. But fulfilling relationships do not happen automatically and they don't happen when the relationship is driven by a need rather than caring. If the relationship is going to grow we must give it our time and attention. Author Michele Germain explains how to build and maintain a healthy and loving relationship.

Surviving A Dysfunctional Family: Ten Ways to Make Peace With the Past and Create a New Future Surviving a dysfunctional family doesn't necessarily mean getting along better with your relatives. The most important thing is dedication to trying new things and learning from your experience. Change doesn't happen overnight; it comes little by little, more and more, deepening your ability to love, create, and make a difference personally and in society. So how do you go about doing this? Here are ten ways to spark change in your life and relationships.

Why Do People Lie? Lying is always a form of control. Some people are pathological liars, having learned that they get a rush from manipulating others with lies. But most people lie when they are afraid of the consequences of telling the truth. Learn more from Margaret Paul, Ph.D.

	The Dating Scene - Signs of a Promising Relationship Learn some of the red flags as well as some of the signs of a promising relationship from Margaret Paul, Ph.D.
	Opening Up to Love After Being Hurt by Natasha Munson You can open yourself up to love, but know that love must be reciprocal. You will love him and he will love you. You will not need each other, but you will want each other. Love is not needy. Love is not possessive. Love is something that makes your life better and makes you feel happy.
	The Ten Commandments of Family Harmony by Mark Sichel, LCSW Family feuds can cause depression, anxiety, sleeplessness, loss of appetite, sadness, confusion, and rage. No one wants to live like that! Here are some simple rules for turning family feuds into family fun.
	Pregnancy and Parenting at StorkNet If you're looking for information on pregnancy and parenting, StorkNet has a wealth of information including a week by week guide to pregnancy.
	Domestic Violence Discussion with Jennifer Bowles, MSW, LCSW
	Married Romance The newest site in the StorkNet Family Network! Visit Married Romance designed to help you build friendship and intimacy through the trials of life.