Contact Wifey

Got a question for Wifey? E-mail her at lorraine_robertson@comcast.net.

Got an interview, appearance or writing request? E-mail her at lorraine_robertson@comcast.net.

Want to be featured in Wives’ Words or Moms' Musings; or ... just want to say hi? E-mail Wifey at lorraine_robertson@comcast.net.

Read more...

Help! I’m a Newlywed… What Do I Do Now? Wife-Saving Advice Every New Bride Must Know to Survive the First Year of Marriage

Product Details
Publisher: 30 Miles Media, Inc.
ISBN-10: 0-9796459-3-X
ISBN-13: 978-0-9796459-3-8
Available now

"'Help! I'm a Newlywed...What Do I Do Now? is a smart, insightful and often funny view into managing the first year of marriage. Written in an easy to read style that's full of folksy wisdom and useful advice, this book is a must for any new bride."
—Scott Haltzman, MD, Author of The Secrets of Happily Married Women:
How to Get More Out of Your Relationship by Doing Less

Happy?
Excited?
Scared?

YOU'RE NOT ALONE!

Whether you’re stressing about your new in-laws, your new sex life, or your new husband leaving his clothes all over the bedroom floor, Help! I’m a Newlywed… What Do I Do Now? Wife-Saving Advice Every New Bride Must Know to Survive the First Year of Marriage will help you graduate from girlfriend to wife without having a panic attack. Let it guide and comfort you through the kinks and challenges of your new world.

Discover how to:

- Maintain your identity, career, and a little bit of sanity
- Balance money, your checkbook, and the needs you both have
- Live together, while liking it and loving each other
- Bust the newlywed sex myths
- Deal with instant in-laws, family, and friends
- Whiz through wedding withdrawal and wrap up post-wedding details
- Cope with the die-hard sports fanatic who is now your husband

“What an amazing book! It offers sound, honest, practical advice that inspires and entertains. This book is filled with wisdom, insight and humor… I recommend it to anyone starting out in those first years of marriage!” —Nancy Feth, Life Coach

“It’s marvelous! If I had the book when I got married, it would have saved me a lot of money, time, and frustration. Thank you for letting me know that I am not alone.” —Samarra Mbenga, Financial Planner

“An excellent read. As a psychotherapist and educator I highly recommend your practical and easy to understand insight... I will forever consider your book a realistic resource and excellent advice to help love grow in the sacred covenant of marriage.”
—Dr. Adolph Brown, Author, Educator, Motivational Speaker, Psychologist

Help! I'm a Newlywed...What Do I Do Now? includes more than 225 Do's and Don'ts to help you thrive in your first year of marriage and beyond. It's the perfect gift for every new bride.



BOOK EXCERPTS
Contents

Why I Wrote This Book

Chapter One
After the Wedding
Once the Bouquet’s Been Thrown, the Guests Go Home, and Wedding Withdrawal Sets In

Chapter Two
For Better or For Worse
Tackling Change, Fear, and the Newlywed Jitters

Chapter Three
Mrs. Who?
Graduating from Girlfriend to Wife, Gracefully

Chapter Four
Living Together
Sharing Space and Staying Sane

Chapter Five
Sex? Sex. Sex!

The Newlywed Myths – Lots, Little, or Lack Of

Chapter Six
Money – Mine, Yours, and Ours
Balancing Love, Marriage, and the Checkbook

Chapter Seven
Friends and Family 101
Managing Instant In-Laws, Extended Families, and Friends

Chapter Eight
The Sports Fanatic
Surviving the Games, the Boys, and Your Beer-Stained Carpet

Chapter Nine
Just for Him
How to Love Her, Humor Her, and Stay Out of the Doghouse

Afterword
365 Days Later
Break Out the Bubbly and Celebrate! It’s Your Anniversary!

Wifey Reading & Resources

Why I Wrote This Book

Help! I’m a newlywed… what do I do now? That’s a thought most new wives have at some time — in the kitchen, or the bedroom, when the in-laws come to visit, or maybe during everyday conversation with your husband. Regardless of where or why you thought it — you did! And if you’re anything like me, you were probably too scared to ask anyone what you should do. That’s exactly why I wrote Help! I’m a Newlywed… What Do I Do Now? Wife-Saving Advice Every New Bride Must Know to Survive the First Year of Marriage.

As a former glowing bride, I found my wedding day to be the happiest, most magical day of my life. I married my best friend, Napoleon, a man I had been involved with for more than five years and was engaged to for one. I was ecstatic that I found the man I wanted to start a family with, to travel around the world with, and to share denture cream with once we’re old and gray. My face beamed brightly all day, and I have very expensive pictures to prove it. I was absolutely certain that I had made the right decision — I love this man madly — so why was I about to go crazy?

I must’ve read every bridal magazine in existence during my engagement. They were very informative about everything leading up to my wedding. The problem was that very little information was available about what to do when I got back from my tropical-paradise honeymoon. Not much for when we walked through the door as husband and wife and had to live with each other — and like it! There was no one saying, “It’s going to be an adjustment,” or “It’s OK not to know what to do now.” All I heard was “You must be so happy” or “You’re so lucky to be married.” Now don’t get me wrong, I was happy, but I was also terrified of my new role in my relationship!

One day, I finally got up the nerve to ask my mother why Napoleon and I were fighting more than usual. And then I asked my aunt why I had to cook dinner every night. And what was I supposed to cook? I even asked my girlfriend how to get my husband to pick up his dirty clothes after he steps out of them each day.

After opening my mouth and screaming, “Help! I’m a newlywed… what do I do now?” I found out that I wasn’t alone. And most important, that I was perfectly normal. I discovered that millions of women and men have millions of questions about being married and that doesn’t mean they don’t love their spouses or don’t like being married. It just means they need help. So here it is… help… to hopefully make things a little easier for you and your new hubby.

Now I must tell you that I am not a doctor, a counselor or a therapist. I have not completed years of scientific research, nor do I plan to bore you, or myself, with any. I’m a wife. Correction, I’m a happy, loving, sometimes frightened, confused and frustrated but willing-to-learn, madly-in-love-with-my-spouse, still-figuring-things-out wife — just like you. I’ve successfully survived the newlywed years — my husband and I are celebrating eight exciting years together — and we continue to work hard to make our marriage work.

Now some of the advice in this book is first-hand, about things that I’ve done and some are things I wish that I did. I’ve drawn from my own ongoing experiences in this exciting world of marriage and I thought it would be helpful to share all of this with you. Plus, I’ve talked to countless brides and wives — newly engaged, freshly married and old-school veterans — and have taken into account their stories, joys and fears. I’ve asked for advice and suggestions from women and men of all ages, and I welcome yours, too.

My goal is to help new wives (and husbands, too) through the kinks of their happy but also scary new unions by offering suggestions for the many challenges and situations that they may face during the beginning of marriage. Hearing that other people were going through some of the same, very real adjustments of marriage that Napoleon and I were going through — no matter how large, small or silly they seemed — left me comforted and more confident in our relationship. I hope it will for you, too.

However, it’s very important for you as a new wife to understand that every individual and couple is different. Some people face different obstacles than others and some handle the same obstacles in different ways. It is crucial to your relationship that you as a couple handle the challenges that you face in your marriage in ways that make you both comfortable and happy.

The Do’s and Don’ts in this book are suggestions that I and many other newlyweds have found to be helpful. Some you may agree with, and some you may not. That’s perfectly OK! Do take this book seriously and take all the advice that suits you, but also take it with a grain of salt and a sense of humor. And, most importantly, don’t take anyone’s advice (even mine) if you are not comfortable with it!

I love my husband, I love being married — and I’d love to keep it that way. In writing this book, I’m not only trying to help you, but to help myself, too. There’s nothing wrong with not knowing what to do in your marriage, but there is something wrong with not finding out!

Read more...

Media

Greetings, Media!

Thank you for your interest in Wifey, AskWifey.com and Help! I’m a Newlywed … What Do I Do Now? Wife-Saving Advice Every New Bride Must Know to Survive the First Year of Marriage.

To request review copies and press kits; to schedule an interview or appearance: or for writing services please e-mail lorraine_robertson@comcast.net and your requests will be addressed immediately.

For more information about my freelance writing please visit my dedicated site, 30 Miles Media, Inc.

I appreciate your time and consideration; and thank you in advance for helping to spread the word.

Sincerely,
Lorraine Sanabria Robertson

Recent Appearances

Wifey on The Travel Channel's "Great Cruises: Why Not the Mediterranean?" (Spring 2009)

Why Not Talk Cruise with Ken Muskat "Misconceptions of Cruising" (April 2009)

Pyschjourney Podcast and Love Love and Marriage (December 2008)

TLC's "A Wedding Story" (Summer 1999)

Read more...

Who is Wifey and Why is She Telling Me What to Do?

30 SECOND VERSION

I'm a former music industry executive who left the business with big dreams of starting a writing career and a family. I'm happy to report that's exactly what I did. Now, instead scheduling hectic press days and appearances for recording artists I schedule homework, play dates and sport activities for my own little superstars. I do my best to balance marriage, motherhood and all the mayhem with a writing career that I love dearly. Oh, did I mention I just ran my first marathon? That's right, all 26.2 miles of the Marine Corps Marathon while tweeting and taking pictures for the Washington Post online. I'm on a mission to to be the healthiest that I can be and hope to inspire others to do the same. I recently published my first book; frequently write for several national magazines; I’m the founder of AskWifey.com and RunWifeyRun.blogspot.com; and you may have seen my wedding on TLC's "A Wedding Story or caught me on The Travel Channel's television show "Great Cruises: Why Not the Mediterranean?"

To read about my 2010 shining moments click here.

MORE DETAILS, PLEASE!

I’m a wife and a mother. Correction, I’m a happy, loving, sometimes frightened, confused and frustrated, but willing-to-learn, madly-in-love, still-figuring-things-out wife and mother — just like you. I am not a doctor, a counselor or therapist. I have not completed years of scientific research nor do I plan to bore you, or myself, with any. I’ve survived the newlywed years; in fact, husband and I just celebrated number 11. I’ve also lived through nine years of parenting; and am confident I can make it through at least another… nine.

How I Got Here…



First came marriage. My newlywed year was eye-opening for me. So eye-opening I wrote a book about it, Help! I’m a Newlywed… What Do I Do Now? Wife-Saving Advice Every New Bride Must Know to Survive the First Year of Marriage.

Next came the baby carriage. More of the whole eye-opening thing, mixed together with being totally overwhelmed. Two years later I had the nerve to do it again. No book yet, but I definitely feel one coming.

I started this site to share lessons that I’ve learned in this wonderful, but challenging world of marriage and motherhood and to give impartial advice to those who need it. Since then it’s evolved out of its original Q&A format into a more free-flowing outlet about the ups and downs of marriage, motherhood and more recently getting - and staying fit. Got a question about your husband, the kids, your girls, fitness, sex - gasp - or anything else, I’m still happy to answer it. Just drop me a note at questions@askwifey.com.

As I said earlier, I am not a doctor, a counselor or therapist (yes, this is the big disclaimer). The advice on this site is intended to be helpful, but is not meant to take the place of marital counseling, legal advice, financial advice or any other professional service. If you feel you may need professional help you should get some. I, in turn, will provide the best unprofessional help I can.

More about Wifey from Husband

She’s a writer. She’s written a book, Help! I’m a Newlywed… What Do I Do Now? Wife-Saving Advice Every New Bride Must Know to Survive the First Year of Marriage. She’s also written all kinds of articles — entertainment, marriage, parenting, health-related — for national magazines like Upscale, Teen People and Heart & Soul.

She’s a successful public relations executive. As the former director of publicity for LaFace Records she’s contributed to the success of several superstar artists like Usher, OutKast, Toni Braxton and TLC. She also worked in higher education for the premiere women’s college for African-American women — Spelman College.

She’s a mom. Her son, Miles, is nine and daughter, Milan, is seven going on seventeen.

She’s a daughter, a friend, a tennis player, a personal trainer, a chocolate lover, a runner, a movie-watcher, a reader, a NBA fanatic… and, most importantly to me, she’s a wife. My wife of eleven long, loving, sometimes challenging, but awesome years (our life-changing wedding was featured on The Learning Channel’s “A Wedding Story”). I wouldn’t trade her for anything. Anything except 50 yard-line seats to see the San Francisco 49ers win the Super Bowl… or Sade. Not really, but if you know someone who can make it happen…

Ahem, thank you for sharing Husband.

Thanks for stopping by Ask Wifey. If you’re so inclined leave me a comment so I can come by and visit you, too. And remember, the secret to being a happy wife begins with being a healthy wife ... and it all starts with you!

Happy Marriage & Mothering,

Read more...