ArcaMax

Dear Amy: My husband and I are in our mid-30’s. We’ve been together for 10 years. During the course of our marriage, we have traveled a lot and have had some wonderful adventures.

We’ve been talking about whether we should have children, and, true to our personalities, we’ve been doing a lot of research about what it is like to be ...Read more

Dear Amy: My husband and I blended our two families 24 years ago.

My husband’s middle son, “Bret” has always been difficult.

Last year my beautiful 40-year-old son died, suddenly and unexpectedly.

Two weeks after his death, Bret and his 4-year-old son came out and stayed with us.

Bret and my husband expected me to cook, clean, and pick...Read more

Dear Amy: My mom unexpectedly passed away about a year ago after a very brief illness. We were extremely close. I was with her nearly every moment for those last weeks.

When she died, I was raw, devastated and completely numb. It took me days to even be able to shed a tear.

My sister-in-law, whom I love, immediately asked me for the ...Read more

Dear Amy: Recently an out-of-state couple moved into our neighborhood, due to being transferred by their workplaces.

These people are charming, but the problem is that they smoke.

Their clothes, their house and their cars smell like cigarettes.

The smell makes me nauseous.

The state we live in is basically a non-smoking state. You cannot ...Read more

Dear Amy: My wife and I have a 4-year-old son who is interested in trying various “pee wee” sports. He has started playing T-ball and soccer.

Both my wife and I are pretty good athletes. In fact, we met in college while playing intramural sports.

Our son is (how to put it?) kind of a klutz. His attention wanders, his coordination isn’t ...Read more

Dear Amy: I am involved in a very messy situation. I had an affair with a married man 33 years older (I am 25, he is 58).

I didn’t go out looking for it, but one thing led to another.

He’d been having marital problems for several years. He described his wife as being a good person but someone who is a spectator in life rather than a ...Read more

Dear Amy: “Leonard” and I have been married for 47 years.

We have raised three kind, independent children with lives of their own.

We have both changed from the lusty and adventurous people of our younger days to what we are now.

I lead a life filled with faith, friends, and love of travel. He is an angry, volatile, unpredictable and ...Read more

Dear Amy: I’ve been assaulted by multiple men in my life, mostly in high school and college.

I have been in extensive therapy to work through the lasting effects of these assaults. I’m very proud of the progress I’ve made.

No one in my family is aware of my experiences, except for my grandmother.

A couple years ago, out of the blue, ...Read more

Dear Amy: I have an 18-year-old grandson, a senior in high school, who divides his time living with each of his parents half-time.

He and I were out shopping at Christmastime, and it seemed that he was in need of clothes.

He was very happy to find some clothes that fit and looked good on him, which he appreciated.

His father established that ...Read more

Dear Amy: I am a retired Catholic priest. For the most part, I have enjoyed these late-life years, especially as the pace of life has eased up.

However, one difficulty I’ve encountered stems from my years in active ministry.

During one of my assignments, I got to know a number of families associated with my ministry. I have remained in ...Read more

Dear Amy: On Sunday, I realized clearly that my husband was emotionally abusive to me.

The next day in your column (I read you in the Los Angeles Times), you shared an “update” from “Drained and Wondering,” as well as the Domestic Violence hotline number. My mom shared this with me and I called the number and spoke with a counselor.

...Read more

Dear Amy: I am a financially responsible and secure 24-year-old woman.

A few months ago I discovered that I am pregnant. The father of my baby is my long-time boyfriend “Tony,” who I have been with exclusively for a couple of years.

Well, Tony is now my ex-boyfriend, I guess. He became very upset when he learned about this unplanned ...Read more

Dear Amy: I was married to a wonderful woman for 30 years.

We raised five children together and had our ups and downs, but overall I felt that we had a solid marriage.

After our youngest left the nest my wife, almost immediately, became a different person.

I know she had a case of Empty Nest Syndrome. She befriended single women and started ...Read more

Dear Amy: I’m a woman in my 70’s. My (slightly older) partner “James” and I are both retired university professors who met after our respective spouses died.

We've been together for almost seven years and have made each other happy, which is a great blessing.

James has three children, the eldest of whom is a daughter. She has made it ...Read more

Dear Amy: My sister and I don’t get along well.

In fact, my sister doesn’t get along with most people. (Our mom always says, “You know how she is.”)

I can put up with her behavior only in spurts. Her husband, however, is wonderful.

Here’s the issue: Right now, my widowed mom, my husband and I live a couple of houses apart in a ...Read more