300 Questions LDS Couples Should Ask for a More Vibrant Marriage

Author: Shannon Alder

Publisher: Horizon Publishers/Cedar Fort

Published Date: January 2011

Softcover; 133 pages

Genre: Religious Non-fiction

ISBN# 978-0-88290-976-9

Reviewed by: Shanda

FTC FYI: free review copy in exchange for an honest review

I wanted to publish this review for my usual Monday post, but I was waiting in an incredibly long security line at the airport. My hubby and I were flying down to Long Beach, CA, for a few days to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary. We made it onto the plane (just barely) and spent the rest of that day visiting The Aquarium of the Pacific, taking pictures of the Queen Mary, and eating dinner at Medieval Times, feeling only slightly silly wearing paper crowns and cheering on the cheesy yet highly entertaining antics of knights on horseback.

We spent the entirety of our anniversary on Tuesday at Disneyland sans kiddos. Going midweek in September was awesome–riding the rides WE wanted to ride, short lines, not too crowded, and the weather was perfect. I highly recommend it. Hubby was able to ride the new Star Tours seven times (four was my limit). We hit our favorite rides at least twice: Indiana Jones, Matterhorn, and Big Thunder (Pirates was closed, darn it).

We even made it onto the Finding Nemo subs (new ride for us) and the AstroBlasters (where hubby kicked my hiney–seriously, check out that score). After a full day at Disneyland, we drove down to Outback Steakhouse, got a couple of steaks to go, and ate our dinner in the hotel room without the TV because the satellite in the area was down. We ate and we talked. It was great.

Did you know?

• 82 percent of all married couples will reach their fifth wedding anniversary, but only 52 percent will celebrate fifteen years of marriage. (page 2)

My parents were married 19 years before divorcing and are each on their 3rd marriages. My husband’s parents divorced after 19 years of marriage as well. My father-in-law had just divorced his 3rd wife when I met my husband. With divorce so fresh in our minds (my parents’ divorce finalized just after I met my hubby) we had several discussions about divorce during our engagement. We gave each other a lot of “outs,” chances to leave the relationship if we had any doubts. We decided early in our relationship that if we married, it was with the understanding that we were going to do everything possible to stay together. We spent our 9 month engagement talking about everything we could think of: our children’s education, how we felt about abortion, political views, toothpaste squeezing procedures, money, expectations, fears, worries, science, religion, TV shows–everything–and yet we only scratched the surface of getting to know each other.

Those who have met my hubby know he is a quiet man. Getting details from him is like a game of 20 (or 50) questions. He’s not being intentionally obtuse. He’s just very easy going. Luckily we’ve reached a place where I can say “Tell me what you know I want to know” and he’ll make a point to be more specific with details. :)

A book like 300 Questions LDS Couples Should Ask is perfect for jump-starting important conversation in marriage. I wish this book had been around early on in our relationship. We’ve answered several of the questions and have realized that we don’t go out on dates nearly enough, we both want to go on a couples’ mission when we get older, I have a lot more close friends than he does, and my hubby is interested in the Chinese culture (I never knew that before this book).

300 Questions LDS Couples Should Ask is divided into sections:

• Rekindling the Romance and Intimacy in Your Marriage