How to Install StabilitrakⓇ For Your Marriage

How to Install StabilitrakⓇ For Your Marriage

Do you ever find yourself careening out of control in your marriage?  Lashing out at your husband in times of stress? Do you ever shut yourself in the bathroom and slide down to the floor in tears? I often find myself in this situation wishing I could go back in time and get control of my emotions without leaving my family in the wake of them.  Then I found Wife for Life: The Power to Succeed in Marriage by Ramona Zabriskie.  I found a system to control my emotions and avoid from skidding out of control.  

As I pulled out of work a year ago my truck slowed to a crawl and an unprocessable number of error lights started flashing on my dashboard.  I tried to pull out of the way of traffic, simultaneously process all the information I was being given, and call my husband for help.  The dashboard was saying “Stabilitrak® engaged, power cut to engine.”

Stabilitrak® is a really handy system created by GM that assists your vehicle when you’re out of control.  It’s most often engaged when you’re skidding on ice or snow.  The vehicle senses this loss of control and makes automatic adjustments to your engine torque and brake control to help keep you on track or assist getting you back on track.  There was some malfunction in the system since I wasn’t actually skidding on ice or off track at all.    

As I tried to explain what was going on in the truck to my husband and maneuver at 2 miles/hour in heavy traffic to the nearest parking lot my “crazy lady” emerged.  I just wanted my husband to swoop in and help save the day but instead I was getting 50 questions.  I got overwhelmed and yelled, “Just come get me!”

After I got parked in the lot and the truck turned off I immediately felt bad for my lashing out.  My internal Stabilitrak® didn’t engage, in fact it didn’t really exist.  I had been moving through life skidding over one patch of ice, bouncing off a guardrail, and speeding off to the next pile of snow that would cause me to lose control.  I said what I thought, when I thought it and didn’t care how bad it stung my husband when it came flying out of my mouth.  

Wife for Life University has helped me to calibrate my marriage Stabilitrak®.  I’ve learned techniques to avoid and manage conflict and self-care tactics as well.  I’ve also learned to recognize and tame my “crazy ladies”. Looking back on that sunny, snowless day I can see clearly where I let myself go astray.  

My fear of interdependence came raging out in that moment as I tried to steer off the highway.  I wasn’t in control of the situation and didn’t know how to rectify it on my own.  I needed my husband, but I didn’t call him.  The “crazy lady” that comes out when my fear of interdependence is present called him.  “Stupidia” got frustrated that he didn’t immediately jump in the car and rescue me so she talked down to him, treated him like he was an idiot for not knowing what I needed, and then barked orders at him.  

He was just trying to understand the issues with the truck and ask questions to help him diagnose the problem.  He’s information based and driven to solve problems.  Not to mention he was probably concerned for my well-being and since his life goal is to make me happy he was working to understand so he could help.  

What I should have done was “drop and cover” or in other words, take a minute to assess the situation.  I could have resorted to empathy, affection, accountability, or humor.  

I could have thought, “it must be hard for him to not be right here with me to help.”

I could have said, “I love you so much and I am so glad that I can call you for help.”

I could have thought, “my stress is causing me to be unreasonable and mean.”

I could have said, “your wifey is stranded and needs saving please come rescue me!”

They say hindsight is 20/20 but Wife for Life University is helping me have the foresight to prevent conflict and respond to situations instead of just reacting. It’s calibrating and installing my inner Stabilitrak®.  Read the book, enroll in the courses, or subscribe to the blog.  Find your inner Stabilitrak® and start improving your marriage.

Evin is 5!

Planning began for Evin's birthday last year.  In years past all my help is just standing around waiting for me to tell them what to do.  NOT this year!  Here's the planning corner with to-do list by time, complete with photos of my inspirations, and a map of the party! 

These terrariums were fun and easy!  Jars off our local neighborhood facebook page, some succulents we already had, moss and mini dinosaurs. 

I have never mastered cake icing so Cody assisted.  This cake had a special surprise inside!  Scroll down to see!

Cookie dough mud and dinosuar bones.  The Indominus Rex head made a reappearance for decor!

Some adults only Jungle juice! 

The dino den in Evin's room. 

Lego Dinosaur building area!

Digging for Dino skeletons! 

We're ready bring on the party!

Little brother is ready to party!

Orange slime made for a fun dino DNA area!

Dino doodling with stencils and stamps we got for Christmas! 

Add kids!

Wife for Life University

 Today I got yet another reminder of why the work I'm doing on my marriage is so very important and paying off!  

About a year and a half ago I was doing some soul searching and thru Chalene Johnson's 30-day push program I realized that my intrinsic priority in my life was work. I'm good at, motivated by, and driven to work.  I also discovered that my marriage was a key priority something that's VERY important to me but doesn't come naturally.  Chalene suggests that if there's something you're not that great it just good how to be better at it.  So I googled, "How to be a better wife." 

I found Ramona Zabriskie. I started watching her youtube videos, put her book on my Christmas list, read all her blogs, and followed her a Facebook.  I loved what she had to say.  It was marriage help for the wife.  Karl didn't have to do a thing but just be him.  

One night we got in to an argument and I had vented to all my friends and family about this particular topic.  I'd say most of us have disagreements in this area.  I disagreed with how he was parenting Evin.  Since historically my friends and family just got me more riled up, I facebook messaged Ramona.  After my tirade I felt better, didn't ever expect her to respond, but she did.  And her response made SO much sense!  It was explanatory, consoling, and action based.  It was PERFECT.  

The book arrived from Christmas and I've read it multiple times including listening to it while I drive.  I enrolled in Wife for Life University and now I'm a teaching assistant for the program, so YES I'm biased.  

But the results are real.  I have so many examples of our progress.  We'd been living in marriage survival mode with two small kids, busy careers, and all the other adult responsibilities.  

Now I get hugs, squeezes, and thank yous when I buy pizza rolls.  

I'm referred to as his cornerstone. 

We hold hands on date nights. 

I don't get mad when he doesn't listen when he's on his phone or watching T.V. (well most of the time). 

He helps whenever I ask. 

And today he saved me from utter embarrassment.  

We're trying to work toward being debt free so we're scrimping and saving whereever possible.  The boys were starting to look a little scraggly and it was time for hair cuts.  I figured, I can save us some dough, this can't be that hard.  I'll just cut Briggs' myself.....

It was bad, like uneven, scraggly, goofy, bad. I was humiliated and could not bare to take him in and admit my failure.  I don't like to be bad at things.  So Karl said, "I'll just tell them I did it." 

He called, made the appointment, claimed he cut the hair.  

We went in to the hairdresser and the woman told Karl to go sit in the corner in time out.  She continued to tease him about how awful of a job he did and scold him.  I couldn't take it, I had to walk away and sulk.  He just laughed and took it all in stride.  

Thank you amazing husband.  

And thank you Wife for Life.   

Evin's 6 Nerf Party!

Evin's been dreaming about a Nerf party since last February.  Well here it is!  

His dad brought home some giant pieces of cardboard from work. 

We amassed a Nerf collection.  

 

 

Pro tip: if you do this, go easy on the guns.  Everyone will bring their own and every gift will be another Nerf gun!

Eye protection is a must so the other parents think you're responsible.  

 

Orange food is EASY!  

A handy husband means some great Nerf targets. 

A graphic designer sister means your kid gets his own nerf logo.

Balloons and streamers add flair....a tall father-in-law is incredibly helpful for streamer installations.  

Add kids and some wild adults and you've got a party!