What Fresh Hell: Laughing In The Face Of Motherhood

When we choose a spouse we look for someone we're attracted to, someone we love, and someone we can have fun with. Then we have kids and find ourselves co-running a household with competing viewpoints that we may not have discussed before. On FB Kelly asked: How should my husband and I navigate differences of opinion on parenting situations? There are a LOT of hills my husband is willing to die on. If I have a difference of opinion on importance, he then gets frustrated with me. The most important relationship in the family is between the parents, so it is crucial not to let disagreements about parenting lead to marital discord. One solution is to use Nick North's number system: when you or your spouse expresses a strong opinion about discipline, give it a number: "I want our kids' rooms kept clean at all times. On a scale of 1 to 10, that's a 9 for me." "I want there to be no cursing in our house, and that's about a 5 for me." When it comes to discipline, if one spouse is finding they have a ton of 8s, 9s a