Better Lives. Building Tribes.

01/02/2025

12/24/2024

07/20/2024

My husband drives our cars like he stole them. 😂

I often joke with him about what is really happening behind the scenes here.

After all, he’s been flying planes for nearly 20 years and I just assumed that the talent transferred over to driving.

He says that driving and flying are completely unrelated.

But, I go for both of them being within the realm of the transportation industry.

😊

But, anyway we had date night on Thursday night.

And, he drives because I’m a passenger princess.

Towards the end of the date, I ask him if he has enough cash to pay the sitter.

He says no.

So, he starts Googling ATMs around us.

And in his typical fast and furious way of driving,

Lands on an ATM in a bar.

Not my first choice, but hey! You do you.

He said it pretended to give him money and eventually shut down altogether.

Then he zoomed over to a gas station.

It was out of order.

So, then he says he’s not going to Google anymore.

He’s just going to hustle to the next bank he sees.

I’m not thrilled because in the moment it felt like all thrust and no vector.

So, I say something rude like, “you do know that not all banks have ATMs?”😎

He mumbled the F word under his breath.

And instead of absorbing that frustration and making it my own,

I took the high road.

And asked if it would be ok if I continued to Google ATMs.

He reluctantly agreed.

And we eventually found a bank that had an ATM.

And, got back to the sitters on time.

So, later that night, we did a recap of the night.

He apologized for saying the F word.

I apologized for waiting until the last possible moment to help him Google.

And, he gave me a giant smooch before bed.

Along time ago, we made a pact to fully wrap up our garbage.

And we stick to it.

Then we look towards the future without dragging our trash from past.

I hope your Saturday is amazing!

👉If you have a friend or family member that would like a FREE email everyday, give them this link and I’ll hook them up. https://betterlivesbuildingtribes.lpages.co/get-on-my-email-list/

Dr_Meaghan

07/09/2024

My husband and I had a little bit of a row last night.

It was his first day at his new job, so I’m sure there were some weird feelings swirling around.

And, he’s slightly locked into this track for the next 5 years until he retires, so no pressure at all. 😬

On my side, it is really hard to run a business.

But, dealing with insurance companies is no doubt the hardest part of my job.

It is hard enough to deal with insurance companies as a member,

But as a provider...

It is next level.

My client portal has been glitching and if insurance companies don’t receive the most perfect claim ever created, they just don’t pay.

So, I was venting a little bit about my income to expenditure ratio.

And, my husband was like, “why can’t you just call them up and tell them you’re unhappy? Demand that they fix the problem or else.”

I think I may have busted out laughing. 😂😂😂😂😂

The thought of giving insurance companies an ultimatum was hysterical.

But, my husband didn’t love that reaction.

And because I ruffled his feathers by rejecting his advice,

He doubled down.

And, so did I.

I’m always up for a good debate on who knows more about insurance companies, LOL.

After a while of back and fourth, my husband said he may have missed the window of opportunity.

I asked more about that.

And he explained that he forgot to validate and support me first.

That he gave unsolicited advice on something he actually knows nothing about.

He said he got lost in the idea that my ultimatums with others, typically work wonders.

But, he understands, now, that insurance companies are a different beast.

They have no incentive to take care of their members.

And zero incentive to take care of their providers.

So, an ultimatum that is landed on a crowd that has zero incentive to do better, will not be met with anything positive.

And then I felt bad after he gave me his spiel about how he was wrong.

And assured him that me and my biller are working hard to fix it.

Which only brought me closer to him.

And him to me.

Happy Tuesday!

Dr_Meaghan

06/30/2024

My daughter likes to stomp when she doesn’t get her way. 😂

It is the one legged kind of stomp where she uses all of her body weight to make sure the stomp gets noticed.😬

I have asked other people-teachers, coaches, other professionals if she does it in front of them too,

But, the answer is always no.

So, she seems to reserve the stomp for us.

Lucky us.

On the same note, my couples will say that they don’t have the kind of problems they have with their partner, with anyone else.

Both situations seem pretty clear to me.

People are dropping their filter in front of the people that they deem as loving and caring for them.

In a lot of ways they feel safe enough to do that, which is great.

And while, my husband and I probably have the skills to be able to handle the stomping,

Some partners don’t necessarily have the skills to handle the unfiltered version of their partner.

Because, if we can feel safe enough to show up as our authentic selves.

We are also showing people the most raw, vulnerable side of ourselves.

In so many ways, we attempt to recreate our childhoods through our partnerships,

Which can be a really beautiful thing.

Sometimes our partners heal old wounds that they didn’t create.

But, sometimes we can recreate the same abusive childhood through our partnerships.

And, the unfiltered version of our partner is just an extension of the trauma we’ve already endured.

So my logic is that we need to assess whether the person on the receiving end of the stomping can handle our stomping.

Or whether our less than preferred, unfiltered reaction creates a culture of fear.

Because fear is the enemy of love.

And I’m only here for the love.

👉Read more about how to go on a deeper quest for love in my book, Relationships Don’t Have to Suck. It has made it to an Amazon Best Seller in 3 different categories! I couldn’t be more excited.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D6GYJMFG?dplnkId=c9b15484-c822-41b5-8bec-45ca1ad8c422&nodl=1
Dr_Meaghan

06/26/2024

I left a really negative review the other day.

Which is out of character for me.

Because I think the world needs more positive reinforcement,

Rather than more critique.

But, I take my duty to protect people very seriously.

And, if I have been on the receiving end of a harmful gig,

And, I’m pretty confident that others have been too,

I want to give people all the information to make the most informed decision.

But, no surprise the business that I reviewed didn’t appreciate my review. 😬

I think they had to suspect that it was coming though,

Because we’ve had so many failed attempts to resolve our problems amicably.

And because they have refused to budge at all,

I just think it is better to keep others from going down the same road that we’ve had to go through.

So, they sent us an email that blasted us.

They gave some warnings.

Made some threats.

And just like our intimate partnerships, we had a choice.

1) We could blast them back in the same way they blasted us. (And I think my blast would be significantly better than their blast). 😂

or

2) We could let it go.

Because my mission was to warn other potential clients of their bad practices.

I did that.

Everything else would be force fed from my ego.

And that’s out of alignment with my mission.

But, independent from how heated we are, I think we have a responsibility to ask ourselves what our goal is with this engagement.

Are we trying to align?

Do we have a duty to protect?

Or are we just trying to be outrageous to see who can win?

Because this pause to reflect is everything.

It is the ticket to making the right choice.

And the right choice can often bring more peace.

With more peace, comes more love.

👉 My book talks a lot about communication choices that bring us more love. Last day to get your FREE Kindle download before it jumps in price. Click the link below ⬇️

Happy Hump Day!

Dr_Meaghan. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D6GYJMFG?dplnkId=0b35748e-d6c2-4939-b026-dfe3d9a8dd04&nodl=1

06/22/2024

Today is an incredibly exciting day for us.

Today, marks the day that my husband returns home for good.

He’s been away from us for a grueling six months.

And, while we have done the best we can, he’s our beacon of light.

While I’m great at fulfilling all the basic needs, he brings the joy.

It’s like Christmas morning over here. 😍

Also, I wanted to share a slice of what I was up to while he was gone.

In order to prevent my loss of sanity,

Because, we all know that kids absorb every kind of energy, both positive and negative, like a sponge.

Even the doggo jumps in for the show,

I kept myself pretty occupied with my latest and greatest project.

I have been in the mental health field for about 15 years,

And a lot of those have been spent helping people with their relationships.

I have heard so many things throughout the years.

I don’t think I could ever describe the depths of what I’ve heard.

And there’s a good chance that nobody would believe the things that I’ve heard.

But, with the darkness that people describe to me,

They are trusting me with the most vulnerable, raw, and authentic versions of themselves.

And when we expel all of the darkness,

We have a chance to put the clutter aside,

To reveal the light.

And I wanted to write about the light.

I wanted to write about the 9 Happy Couple Hacks that Keep Relationships Together.

In my very first book: Relationships Don’t Have to Suck.

I hope you love my book as much as I loved writing it.
👉It is free on Kindle from today through Wednesday. Click here! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D6GYJMFG

👉Also, if anybody would like an email from me everyday, here’s that link too. https://betterlivesbuildingtribes.lpages.co/get-on-my-email-list/

Have a great day!

Dr_Meaghan

06/03/2024

My kids got the most amazing box of goodies the other day.

It was from my aunt and uncle, who have fallen head over heels in love with my kids.

The note said that it was an early birthday present even though both of my kids have August birthdays.

So the note continued to address how part of the box of goodies was for my daughter because they know how much she likes to “create” special things in the night.

She got all different kinds of fabrics, some pom pom balls, and some string.

The other part of the note was addressed to my son. It talked about how my aunt couldn’t resist creating the most colorful of all snakes for him.

She quilted a whole bunch of different patterns of fabrics to make this incredible stuffed snake.

She said she had to make one for my daughter so she wouldn’t feel left out.

The level of thoughtfulness that went into this gift was rather mind blowing.

Because the gifts didn’t cost a whole bunch of money.

But, the gifts were delicately tailored to my kid’s unique set of characteristics.

And having someone think of them like little mini adults was everything to them.

I think about the same thing with my couples.

Holidays, special events, and special occasions can be the gentle reminder to give our partners some extra lovin.

But, making sure that we give them some extra lovin in the unique way that they need is the only way that we actually get credit for our efforts.

Getting credit for my efforts is pretty important to me.

👉If you ever want me to give you some ideas as to how to make your partner feel special in the way that they need, hit me up.
Click to get your free email: https://betterlivesbuildingtribes.lpages.co/get-on-my-email-list/
Dr_Meaghan

06/01/2024

It’s my husband’s birthday today!

While he would much prefer to forget about his own birthday,

In hopes that everyone else forgets too,

He married someone that is the polar opposite of him.

I bring the loud, bold, and spicy to his otherwise quiet life.

And I take the job of letting the world know how much brighter it got 38 years ago, very seriously.

There’s two reasons for this:

1) My husband is actually one of a kind.

He thinks before he speaks.

He’s incredibly humble for how much ego he deserves to have.

Nobody knows the depths of how smart he actually is.

Giving gifts makes him feel uncomfortable, but he gives them anyway (because he knows they make me happy).

He would give the shirt off his back if the recipient had to suffer less.

He’s the most loyal of all the beavers.

2) I don’t know that there’s another human on the planet that could love him harder than I do.

While I used to compete to be the winner of the fights,

I know compete to see if I can love him harder than he loves me.

And no surprise that it’s the kind of competition where everyone gets to walk away feeling on top of the world.

Sometimes I win just because I’m louder in my positive reinforcement.

Sometimes he wins because he does something or says something that is completely unexpected- but mind blowing.

But, either way I am going to argue that I got the better end of the deal in snagging him.

Because to know him is to love him.

Happy Birthday Love!

👉While my book is a little delayed, it is coming out at the end of this month- Relationships Don’t Have to Suck. Here’s my early bird link
https://betterlivesbuildingtribes.lpages.co/ebook-opt-in-page/
Dr_Meaghan

05/31/2024

This morning I asked my husband whether he loved my incredible personality😂

Maybe not the best move.

But, his response was “which one?? There’s a few to choose from that are quite remarkable.”😬

Also, not the best move.

Sometimes I’m really good at taking some jokes about my personalities.

I’m well aware that I’m a mixed bag of entertainment.

But, today was not the day.

Getting too young kids to the post office by 7:45 am to renew their passports.

Only to be met with the longest train on the planet that just happens to run right in front of the post office.

So, I replied with a “not nice.”

And he had two options.

1) He could double down by saying that everyone’s got jokes, and normally I laugh, and I should laugh because he’s hilarious.

2) He can say sorry for hurting my feelings and profess his love for me, as a whole, independent from how I’m relatively unpredictable.

He did a little bit of the first option.

But, then flooded me out with the second option.

And! He also threw in how he’s really unhappy because he’s in a program that isn’t challenging nor stimulating at all.

And, he just wants to be home with his family.

I can’t emotionally connect to being made fun of,

But I can certainly connect with the reason he made fun of me being that he’s actually sad.

And I can send him a few nuggets about how this is temporary, we are almost there, and he has every right to feel sad.

And The Grumpy Monkey is able to see some light at the end of the tunnel.

Therefore, I’m back to feeling loved.

👉Want some tips about how to work around your own Grumpy Monkey? Let me know.

👉If you have a friend that wants a daily email, here’s that link: https://betterlivesbuildingtribes.lpages.co/get-on-my-email-list/

Dr_Meaghan

05/31/2024

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Better Lives. Building Tribes.

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05/30/2024

Solutions Focused Couples Say

Better Lives. Building Tribes.

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