Unwed Tipping Point / Heroes Up Close / Horses Mouths - 5/14/09

[Smartmarriages]

- UNWED MOTHERS: THE TIPPING POINT
- FREE CONFERENCE CALL TONIGHT
- MEET YOUR HEROES UP CLOSE AND IN PERSON
- STRAIGHT FROM THE HORSES MOUTHS

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- UNWED MOTHERS: THE TIPPING POINT

All the bad advice telling women to postpone marriage until they've *found
themselves* is leading to this:

- Number of Unwed Mothers Has Risen Sharply in U.S.
Women in 20s, 30s Are Driving Trend, Report Shows

By Rob Stein and Donna St. George
Washington Post Staff Writers
May 14, 2009 

Heidy Gonzalez, 21, is living with her two children and their father in
Mount Rainier, but tying the knot is not a priority for them now.

Emily Smatchetti, 38, is a single mother of a toddler in Miami because she
had not found the right man and worried that time was running out. So she
found a sperm donor.

The mothers are part of a far-reaching social trend unfolding across the
United States: The number of children being born out of wedlock has risen
sharply in recent years, driven primarily by women in their 20s and 30s
opting to have children without getting married. Nearly four out of every 10
births are now to unmarried women.

"It's been a huge increase -- a dramatic increase,". . . . "I think this is
the tipping point,"

For the full article:
http://tinyurl.com/pokjg8

See here for Why NOT to WAIT - get this info to our girls!  They don't want
to end up raising kids alone - they just need information about how to get
it right!  
http://tinyurl.com/cev85h

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- FREE CONFERENCE CALL TONIGHT

RE/MML and Christianity Call reminder
How do marriage education skills fit with the concept of Lived Christianity

Thursday, 9 pm Eastern time

Call 712-432-9998   PIN 498485

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- MEET YOUR HEROES UP CLOSE AND IN PERSON

I know that you love to meet these experts in person.  One of the easiest
ways to do that is buy their books and get them signed. It's a good idea to
buy the books in advance and bring them with you to the conference, or buy
them the first few days at the exhibits - don't wait because they almost
always sell out by end of the second day.  You can order all the books here
- lots of them used and at deep discounts:
http://www.smartmarriages.com/app/Media.Booklist

In fact one of my all time favorite books by one of our keynoters, Blaine
Fower's     
Beyond The Myth of Marital Happiness is out of print BUT there are 46 used
copies available on the website.  Buy it and get him to sign this classic.

And, people ask me about conference etiquette: you are definitely allowed to
take photos with these folks - almost everyone does.  - diane

Here are just a few of the authors who will be signing in Orlando:

John Gray - Mars & Venus in the Bedroom € Gary Chapman - The Five Love
Languages & The Five Languages of Apology € Harville Hendrix - Getting the
Love You Want € Sue Johnson - Hold Me Tight € Barry McCarthy - Discovering
Your Couples Sexual Style € Steven Stosny & Pat Love - How to Improve Your
Marriage Without Talking About It € John Van Epp - How to Avoid Marrying a
Jerk € Michele Weiner-Davis - Divorce Remedy € Esther Perel - Mating in
Captivity € Howard Markman & Scott Stanley - 12 Hours to a Great Marriage €
Doug Snyder - Getting Beyond the Affair € Terry Hargrave - Boomers on the
Edge & The Essential Humility of Marriage € Bill Doherty - Take Back Your
Marriage € Janis  Spring - How Can I Forgive You? & Life With Pop & € Scott
Haltzman - The Secrets of Happy Families & The Secrets of Happily Married
Men € Mike & Harriet McManus - Living Together € Beverly & Jon Meyerson -
After the Glass Slipper € Mark & Debra Laaser - The Seven Desires of Every
Heart € Don Ferguson - Reptiles in Love € Anne Bercht - My Husband¹s Affair
Became the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me € Bev & Tom Rodgers - The
Singlehood Phenomenon € Dave Carder - Torn Asunder & Close Calls € Mitch
Temple - The Marriage Turnaround € Steven Stosny - Love Without Hurt

Presenters, if I left you off the list, let me know.  - diane

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- STRAIGHT FROM THE HORSES MOUTHS

Diane, 
I just attended a marketing seminar and they said one should always include
testimonials on conference flyers and brochures.  People love the Smart
Marriages Conference and you're always telling us that we should tell people
WHY they should attend.  Why not put some of our LUV right on the brochure?
This is not meant as a criticism, just a suggestion.
Candace 

You're right, ours is probably the world's only brochure that doesn't
include endorsements.  I keep meaning to - just seem to run out of space.
There is a collection of endorsements - filled with LUV - here:
http://www.smartmarriages.com/testimonials.html
  - diane