How To Have A Money Conversation With Your Partner Without It Turning Into A Massive Fight

When’s the last time you had a fight with your spouse? Was it the time he left his wet bathing suit at the bottom of the hamper for a week? The time she forgot to mention her 3-day work trip until the day before? The seventy-sixth time he said, “ask mom,” when mini-him wanted Doritos for dinner?

You think these fights are about the fact that you didn’t use your therapist-approved “I sentences”? Hahhahaha, how bourgeois. They are actually about not being able to afford a 24/7 housekeeper. Money planning, and not having enough of it, can get in the way of closeness. Here’s some options for how to think about shared finances, and how to set up those conversations for success:

RELATIONSHIPSAudie MetcalfSeptember 27, 2020Megan Blanchard, Most PopularComment

Moms, Get A Hobby

The other day my mom was like, “Riding has been good for you,” which is her way of saying, “You’re less of a B lately.”

She’s right. I’m 36, and since quitting gymnastics at age sixteen, I’ve pursued various joyless forms of wellness. I muddled through my 20s with hobbies like facials, shopping, wine, bad decisions, bartending, worse decisions, every fitness trend in the book, and even more mind-bogglingly bad decisions. Somehow, I never turned into a better person.

Until I had my daughter.

RELATIONSHIPSAudie MetcalfAugust 26, 2020Megan Blanchard, Most PopularComment

How I Went From Endless Adult Acne To Seven Years of Clear Skin

Adult acne. Two words that should never go together.

I come from a long line of oily, well-meaning people, who just want to go through life without an inflamed face. Genetics have always been against me, but in my late twenties, I found a way to cheat fate. I’m not a doctor, but this is my personal story, and I hope you find it helpful.

I was the classic pimply teenager with T-zone issues that escalated to cystic acne in high school. I went on Accutane when I was 17, and experienced one glorious year of perfect skin (and my first boyfriend) before breakouts returned.

In my twenties, I tried everything from DIY microdermabrasion (huge mistake) to Proactiv to Retin-A. I remember coming home from one facial with scabs on my face that lasted for days. I lived for the moments when I had only a smattering of zits and no big cysts.

Finally, in my late twenties, I found an esthetician who changed my skin by explaining how certain ingredients work on acne-prone skin. For those of you in the Los Angeles area, her name is Jennifer Kramer, and she is founder and clinical director at Corrective Skincare LA. She offers customized treatments, and a thorough education on skincare.