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12 ways to make your wife feel ridiculously attractive
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Your wife needs to know you think she's beautiful every day. Here's how to make that happen. - photo by Melinda Fox
Throughout time, women have been told they need to be beautiful. Today more than ever we are influenced by comparison traps and marketing schemes that are designed to make us feel like we aren't attractive enough.

Even if your wife isn't someone who buys into society's unachievable beauty standards, she still needs to know that one person thinks she's attractive: her husband. You may feel like you're expressing how beautiful you think she is, but she isn't hearing it. Here are 12 ways to change that.

1. Flirt

The fact that you've got the girl is no reason to stop flirting. You need to keep winning her heart. Little flirtations will make her heart flutter just like when you were first dating. You will make her feel valued and beautiful.

2. Dont look at porn

If you need to look at other women to be turned on -- women who are edited to perfection -- she will feel inadequate. Make sure she knows that she is enough for you by avoiding pornography completely.

3. Make her your priority

Put her before your kids, your career, your parents, your hobbies. She should be the most valuable part of your life and you need to treat her that way. Doing this will make your wife feel cherished.

4. Don't care who's watching

Sometimes public displays of affection can go too far. But giving her a big kiss or grabbing her hand without worrying about other people in the room will make her feel as attractive as heck.

5. Tell her

She needs to hear straight up that you think she's beautiful. Don't save compliments for a day that she's all glammed up; tell her when she's not expecting it.

6. Brag about her

There is something so flattering about hearing the man she loves talk lovingly about her to other people. Don't hesitate to introduce your "beautiful wife" or say how lucky you feel to have a lady like her in your life.

7. Let her catch you staring

The worst thing you could do is let her catch you staring at another woman, whether someone on the street or even a movie star. The best thing you could do is to let her catch you staring at her.

8. Keep her picture close

Carry her photo in your wallet or place a frame on your desk at work. She will love knowing you have a photo of her somewhere that you can always see.

9. Touch her

Put your hand on the small of her back, or do something as simple as brushing your hand on her shoulder as you walk by. A small touch will make her feel gorgeous.

10. Write it down

Sometimes spoken words can feel fleeting and meaningless. If you instead write down your feelings about her, she will recognize the solidity of your words because they are pre-meditated and permanent.

11. Be specific

It's easy to say, "You're beautiful." But noticing specifics like, "I love how your eyes have two colors of brown in them," or "You have the cutest ears I've ever seen" makes her know you mean what you say.

12. Take care of your own looks

By observing your own hygiene, taking time for physical fitness, and caring for your body overall, she will recognize that you believe she is a woman deserving of someone who does his best to look good.
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How to avoid 'sharenting' and other paparazzi parenting habits
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A recent study revealed parents often spend up to two hours staging a single photo of his or her child to post online. - photo by Amy Iverson
Before having kids, some people just dont appreciate their friends baby posts. But after having a child of their own, three fourths of new parents jump right on the parental social media bandwagon. If you have become a member of this group, there are some rules to follow for posting responsibly.

Much of a parents worry is how to teach their children to use social media responsibly. We talk with our kids about privacy, oversharing, and setting restrictions on their devices to keep them safe. But parents themselves need to look in the digital mirror once in a while. Before having children, it doesnt take as much effort to think about what to post online. Its up to us to decide what we share about our own lives. But once you become a parent, there are many questions to think about regarding what is appropriate to post about your kids on social media.

In a recent survey, kids clothing subscription company Mac and Mia surveyed 2000 new parents to find out how they are documenting their kids lives on social media, and what concerns they may have.

First of all, people without children seem to feel a bit differently about the onslaught of baby pictures online than those who are parents. 18 percent of people say before they had kids, they were annoyed by their friends baby posts. But after having children of their own, 73 percent admit they post progress pictures of their little ones every single month.

Not only are new parents letting the world know each time their baby is a month older, but they are posting about their kids every few days or so. Men and women report they post 6-7 times per month about their baby.

And while 70 percent of new parents say the benefit of using social media is how easy it is to help family and friends feel involved, there are some downsides. Here are a few tips to avoid the pitfall of becoming paparazzi parents.

Dont miss the moment

In the Mac and Mia survey, some parents admitted to spending up to two hours to get the perfect shot of their baby. That seems a little extreme. New and old parents alike should be careful about spending so much time taking pictures and videos that they dont enjoy the moment. Years ago, I decided to never live an experience through my phone. A study by Linda Henkel, a psychology professor at Fairfield University in Connecticut, found that when people took pictures of objects in an art museum, they didnt remember the objects as well as if they simply observed them.

This photo-taking impairment effect can happen to parents as well. If we are so consumed by getting the perfect photo, we can miss out on the moment all together, and our memory of it will suffer.

Dont forget about privacy

60 percent of couples say they have discussed rules and boundaries for posting their babys photos, according to the Mac and Mia survey. Even so, men are 34 percent more likely to publish baby posts on public accounts. If parents are concerned about their childrens privacy, keeping photos off of public accounts is a given.

In the Washington Post, Stacey Steinberg, a legal skills professor at the University of Florida, and Bahareh Keith, a Portland pediatrician, wrote that sharing too much information about kids online puts them at risk. They write that all that sharenting can make it easier for data thieves to target out kids for identity theft. Check that your privacy settings are where they should be and never share identifying information like full names and birth dates.

Dont be paparazzi parents

36 percent of parents say they take issue when their childs photo is posted online by someone else. Responsible social media users will always ask permission before posting a photo of another child. But parents should also think about whether their own children will take issue with their own posted photos a few years down the road.

When parents are constantly snapping pictures and throwing them on social media, it can be easy to forget to pause and make sure the post is appropriate. I always use the billboard example with my kids. I ask them to picture whatever they are posting going up on a billboard in our neighborhood. If they are okay with that, then their post is probably fine. Parents should ask themselves this same question when posting about their children. But they should also ask themselves if their child would be OK with this post on a billboard in 15 years. If it would cause embarrassment or humiliation, it might be best to keep it private.

Once children reach an appropriate age, parents should include them in the process of deciding what pictures are OK to post. Researchers at the University of Michigan surveyed 10- to 17-year-olds and found children believe their parents should ask permission more than parents think they should. The kids in the survey said sharing happy family moments, or accomplishments in sports, school and hobbies is fine. But when the post is negative (like when a child is disciplined) or embarrassing (think naked baby pictures or messy hair), kids say to keep it off social media.
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