Keeping A Marriage RomanticWritten by Alan Detwiler
My belief is that most relationship problems should be given less attention ... how much do you want to stir up bottom muck? A couple will be happier if they pay attention to good things instead of being concerned with problems.A romantic relationship happens because of hopes and dreams a couple has for a happy life together. The relationship will be pleasant and rewarding as long as you pay attention to what inspires those hopes and dreams. To get most from a romantic relationship build upon what makes your relationship worthwhile and wonderful. Nothing is perfect -- Don't expect a perfect relationship. That happens only in fairy tales. Problems will occur. You will get hurt. Being too concerned with problems will stop you from paying enough attention to what is good in relationship. If perfection is goal, you will compare how relationship is now to what you think it should be. You will be continually disappointed. Making relationship better should be goal. If love happens, it will be based on believing that both of you can continue to build a good relationship. Your attitude should signal other person that you will try to patiently work through each other's shortcomings. It won't be easy. Being tolerant and non-condemning is a challenge. But consciously making an effort to be tolerant goes a long way.
| | Allergy-free Wedding FlowersWritten by Thomas Ogren
Allergy-free Wedding Flowers Thomas Ogren I get quite a few emails from brides-to-be, asking me which flowers would be good to use at their weddings, flowers that won’t make them or their bridesmaids start sneezing and sniffling right in middle of wedding. I get enough of these requests that I thought that subject warranted its own article. Wedding flowers First, flowers for a wedding ought to be bright, fun, cheerful, festive flowers. For example, I like “glads,” gladiolas, but I see them used at funerals all too often, so they seem out of place at a fun affair like a wedding. The one thing you don’t want with wedding flowers is pollen! With wedding flowers very little pollen is good, and no pollen at all is by far best. Daises: For starters I would avoid using most of daisy-related type flowers, daisies, gerbera, chrysanthemums, asters, dahlias, and sunflowers unless you know they're pollen-free ones. There actually are quite a few chrysanthemums, dahlias and asters that are called formal doubles and that have no pollen. All of these formal doubled flowers will be ones with a very high number of petals per flower. What has happened with these flowers is that they have been hybridized so often that pollen parts (the stamens) have turned into parts that now look more like petals (staminoids). All true formal double flowers will be pollen free. Goldenrod flowers (bright yellow) are often used as fillers in arrangements and goldenrod is a daisy-ragweed relative and will shed plenty of allergenic pollen. Don’t use goldenrod! Baby’s breath is a popular wedding flower, again, often used as filler between other larger flowers. Baby’s breath is grown and sold as single or double flowered. If you use baby's breath, use only doubled flowered types. Roses: Florist type hybrid tea roses that are still in a closed bud stage and that are not especially fragrant are excellent choices and will shed no pollen. If using roses picked from garden, choose only those roses with healthy green leaves, and pick roses that are still in bud to half-open stages. Some free-flowering garden roses, such as beautiful pale pink ‘Cecile Brunner’ roses, are always allergy-free and produce no pollen at all. The Banksia roses, which will be either yellow or white, are small, cute, come in dense sprays, and are also pollen free. Pots of blooming hydrangeas, especially of old-fashioned Hydrangea macrophylla type, are mostly pollen-free and are good choices to use. Pots of blooming double tuberous begonias, especially all erect type cultivars, almost all of these are great, very large, colorful flowers and pollen-free. The fancy flowered begonias called ‘Reigers’ begonias are also pollen free and come in bright colors or white, yellow, red, salmon, and pink. Lilies of all types can often now be purchased that are either simply pollen-free flowers, or else someone (who doesn't have allergies), can carefully remove brown pollen-bearing anthers on tip of each of six stamens in each regular lily.... watch this pollen as it will also easily stain your wedding clothes, especially anything white. Lilies that have had anthers removed will be completely pollen free. ** A caution here though: sap from any and all kinds of lilies can cause a very nasty, long-lasting itchy skin rash…certainly nothing any bride would want on her honeymoon! With this in mind, watch out for sap of all lilies and of Alstromeria too. Also, it would not be a good idea for a bride to even carry a bouquet of lilies, certainly not if she has skin that is in least bit sensitive. Anyone helping with wedding would be wise not to stick their hands into water in which lilies have been standing, as this water will have sap in it.
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