Relationships

Relationships

I'm trying to figure out how to support my sister, but I don't know how. When my older sister "Sonya" was a teen, she was assaulted by an adult. She got pregnant, and our parents refused to let her terminate the pregnancy or put the baby up for adoption. Sonya was an unwilling mom to "Simon" until she turned 18. At that point, she left him with our parents for extended periods of time while she tried to get an education and figure herself out.

DEAR PAYING: That Gabe earns more than you do should have been taken into consideration at the time you began living with him and his grandsons. Financial counseling might help you to determine what such an adjustment would mean in terms of dollars. The National Foundation for Credit Counseling is a reliable resource. Because these monthly financial disagreements could erode your relationship, please consider couples counseling in order to work out a plan that is fair for all parties concerned.

Caring for both ageing parents and children presents a unique challenge for the so-called 'sandwich generation'

The video posted Monday on TikTok showed Cruz, his girlfriend Jackie Apostel, older brother Romeo and Romeo's girlfriend Kim Turnbull seeming to mock the family drama by mouthing along to the instrumental opening of "On The Block," a 2021 song by Lil Maru. The caption on the video read simply, "Imagine hating and we're just here like." Cruz's video wasn't loading on TikTok at publication time, but you can see what was going on via an X share from user @LucyLuMerrygold.

Many parents believe they are being supportive when they say things like, "I'm just worried about you," or "We only want what's best for you." However, adult daughters can experience these same phrases not as care, but as criticism, control, or quiet disappointment. And it's brutal for a child to feel that from their parent. This disconnect was recently highlighted in an article by Avery White, who identified common phrases parents use with adult children that sound supportive but subtly communicate judgment.

When it comes to clutter, my parents were a case of opposites attract. My dad had a shorthand saying: "ABC." It meant "always be clearing." My mother, on the other hand, loved beautiful things and collected them without much rhyme, reason, or organization. I always followed my dad's footsteps more closely. Although I hold a doctorate and have a career in academia, I started a professional organizing company 17 years ago. Today, A Clear Path has 17 employees.

1) "I'm not sure what you mean by that. Can you explain? This is my go-to response because it forces the other person to spell out their actual intention. Most passive-aggressive comments rely on plausible deniability. When you ask for clarification, you're essentially calling their bluff. The beauty of this phrase is that it's completely neutral because you're just asking a question. If they really meant nothing by it, they can clarify; if they were being passive-aggressive, they now have to either own it or backtrack.

When your partner explodes in anger-blaming, threatening-you find yourself living on edge, walking on eggshells, trying not to trigger the next eruption. The emotional toll is heavy: confusion, pain, resentment, and a growing sense of helplessness about what to do and how to be. Being in a relationship with an angry partner is profoundly stressful and can undermine your well-being and the foundation of the partnership itself.

I had some messed up ideas around a woman's role and the influence of porn on that Jake was my first. I was 17 and he was 18. I lost my virginity way later than all my friends; sex had been so far out of my comfort zone. For me it was like social currency and I put a lot of pressure on myself to get it done.

True love is not transactional. If we only love on the expectation of being loved back, then it is not love, it is bartering. Love is unconditional. I love you, and that is all and everything. You do not need to do anything. You do not need to reciprocate. You do not even need to know.

I'm retired and have discovered a love for making bags, totes and purses with my sewing machine. A few years ago, I started doing local craft shows not because I've turned this into a business, but because it helps clear out the growing inventory. Financially, we're fine. I'm not risking money we don't have. My husband, who still works, strongly disapproves of this.

One of my late mother's widowed friends made the comment, "Finally I can have a scrambled egg for dinner. I'm never making another meatloaf again." And this was a woman who had loved her husband and had a pretty good marriage. Her grown kids were upset that when they came home to visit, "Mama isn't cooking anymore!" Yeah, Mama didn't care.

My husband and I have what one could call a "traditional" marriage: He works, and I tend the home. Since we're child-free and I already finished college, I suppose you could call me a trophy wife, but firstly, I'm nonbinary, and secondly, that's the rub. On paper, not much: I read a lot, I tend to my hobbies, I attempt to bake, and I spend time with my husband.

It takes a lot of brain power to plan a first date. It all starts with figuring out the vibe. Do you want dinner? Drinks? Dinner and drinks? And where do you want to go? Once that's settled, you and your match have to agree on the day, and it can be surprisingly tricky to land on one that feels right.

Relationship research has made it distinctively clear that most relationships don't fail because of singular, isolated, catastrophic events. More often, they disintegrate because of our patterns-the ones that once felt safe and protective, but have turned corrosive and misaligned with our relationship over time. We might keep asking ourselves, "Why do I keep ending up here?"without any good answer coming to mind, or assume that we always "attract the wrong partners."

I was recently celibate for a year. Not out of choice, but because I was grieving the loss of a past relationship. After much post-breakup drawing out, I had finally cut ties with an ex. Ending all communication affected me in ways I hadn't foreseen, even when I was already dating other people. As much as I tried - and even though I was filled with desire - I couldn't open up physically to anyone.

So, I have a friend who comes over to my place and before she leaves, she takes things. She's taken small framed paintings, rugs, pillows, two new sewing kits (one of which was in a box of stuff I wanted to give to a neighbor's daughter), and a lot of booze that she must put into her own water bottles because she doesn't take the booze bottles themselves.Took me awhile to figure that last one out, but it shouldn't have.

DEAR HARRIETTE: I recently received a facial from one of my friends, who works at a spa. Everything went smoothly initially, but the next day I woke up and my skin was dry and peeling. I called her and asked what was happening to my skin. She asked what I had used on my skin the previous night, and I told her my nightly skin care routine, which includes retinols.

Michael and David are gay men who met on one of those cringy, yet stimulating, hookup apps. They flirted through the app's messaging system before deciding to meet for lunch. Lunch? I know. How weird is that? What happened to down and dirty, meaningless sex? Yes, I'm being facetious. Actually, how thoughtful, refreshing, and lovely to meet for lunch. Michael is a "mature" man. Okay, an older man (he's sensitive about his age). He is intelligent, accomplished, well-educated,