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Inheritance Issues and Husband's Inappropriate Ogling

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: My parents have had property for many, many years. This property was to be divided among us kids upon their death.

My father passed away, which puts my mother in charge of everything.

Recently, we found out that she gave ALL this property to one of our siblings.

We were always a close-knit family, but this has caused a huge rift...Read more

St. Patrick's Day Inspiration

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Readers: Happy St. Patrick's Day. Here are some famous and uplifting Irish blessings to add a little sunshine to your day.

An Old Irish Blessing for St. Patrick's Day

"May your days be many and your troubles be few. / May all God's blessings descend upon you. / May peace be within you, may your heart be strong. / May you find what you'...Read more

Haunted by Granddaughter's Addiction and Death

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: Our granddaughter had been on drugs for several years. She had been in and out of jail and rehabs. She had two children, ages 1 and 2. She basically abandoned them, so we all decided tough love and prayer were the answer.

She was found by the side of the road where someone dumped her, dead or dying from a drug overdose. Now we all...Read more

Learning It's OK to Lean On Others

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: Please give me your opinion. I am an 84-year-old widow. I have one child, a son, and one grandchild in town. My other children live hours away. I no longer drive. I am financially independent and have someone to come clean twice a month, drive me to run errands, go to the doctor, do grocery shopping and take me to the beauty shop. ...Read more

Family Troubles Leaving Me at a Loss

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: It has recently come to my attention that my middle adult son has molested my adult daughter when she was 8 years old. She broke down and told me tearfully last week.

She is now 23, and he is 31. And I am completely at a loss of how I should feel, think, react. I'm basically an emotional wreck. He is married with four children (...Read more

Healing From the Heartache of Abusive Adoptive Parents

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: I come from a long history of family dysfunction. Child abuse, toxicity and abandonment are all I ever knew growing up. I developed severe complex PTSD and borderline personality disorder coming into my preteen years. I remember the blame was solely on me for my severe depression, suicide attempts and deep-seated suffering from my ...Read more

Making Peace With Family Estrangement

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: Sixteen years ago, I separated from my wife, as we were headed toward a divorce. Her father, "Bob," just lost it; he was so angry over the divorce. He swore to me that he would do everything he could and spend his last dime to take my sons away from me. He did his best to ruin my career, to no avail. However, through paying for ...Read more

Healing Is Required on Both Sides

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: My husband and I have been married for 17 years and have five adopted children through foster care. We have gone through a lot of tough situations with the children during the last six years, which put a lot of pressure on our marriage, including financially. During that time, my husband lashed out at me frequently. He has said ...Read more

Falling for Wife's Sister

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: I'm retired, which is fine, but not having to go to a job only leaves me with more time to live with my problem. It's one that I've had for a very long time. My wife's sister came to live with us, and I got along with her very well, and when I wasn't working, we spent a lot of time together. We had a lot in common, which led to me ...Read more

Good Friend Insists on Reciprocating Gifts

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: I have a longtime friend who has serious trouble with gifts. It is very difficult to give her anything because she insists on "evening the score" by responding with a gift back to the giver. For instance, we comfortably exchanged token holiday gifts at my place, but my husband learned she liked a certain special candy we had on hand,...Read more

Balancing Boundaries and Support

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: I have been dating my boyfriend for four years and am very lucky to call him mine. He loves me well, gets along with everyone he meets and is very giving. His mother, on the other hand, is a taker, financially and emotionally. She hates her job and where she lives but is not willing to make a change. She relies on her two sons ...Read more

Love, Loss and Longing

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: I'll be married for 25 years this coming June, 30 years together. My husband is great, but he is not interested in sex anymore. He told me, "It's just not important to me."

I'm in my mid-40s and am desperate for intimacy and affection. But aside from that, I enjoy my family dynamics. I don't want to break that up for my own selfish ...Read more

Terrible Twos and Tough Talks

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: I have a son who's going to be 3 in August. He's been going through the "Terrible Twos," and as you can imagine, it's been terrible. His thing right now is that he will throw a fit, and then when he's done, he will wrap his arms around me and say, "I love you, Mommy!"

Well, my husband's aunt has rolled around after her partner died ...Read more

Balancing Family Loyalties

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: My daughter has a 13-year-old son by her first husband and a 14-month-old by her new husband. She and the new husband have been living together for over seven years.

She moved eight hours away with our grandson, then 6, and the boyfriend immediately moved there and moved in. He stated many, many times that he never wanted kids and ...Read more

Are My Hygiene Standards Really Too High?

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: How can I get people who visit me to wash their hands after they use the bathroom? I have provided pump soap so they don't have to use a bar of soap. I have put in decorative paper towels so they don't have to use a cloth towel and a sign that says "Wash your hands."

What else can I do? What can I say to them that won't be insulting...Read more

Boundaries When a Relationship Is All Give, No Take

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: I have a cousin who I grew up with (literally in the same building) for eight years of my life. After our families moved, we stayed close, often kept in touch on social media or through phone calls and text messages. We've often said we were sisters, not cousins.

In recent years I've begun to realize how selfish, self-centered and ...Read more

When the Spark of Love Dies Out

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: This is a tough situation and I'm at a loss for what to do next. First, I've been battling a worsening depression for a few years now. I was 34 when I lost my mom on Memorial Day of 2022 and then my dad to a broken heart the next year. After many trials and tribulations through life, I brought myself slightly out of my depression ...Read more

Mother-in-Law Longs for Order

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: I need advice on how to approach my son about the disorder in his house. He was raised in a very neat home. When he lived alone for several years, his house was immaculate. He's now been married for four years. They have a 2-year-old and one on the way.

Their house is in total disarray -- laundry basket full of dirty clothes, ...Read more

Navigating Forgiveness and Boundaries

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: I am 70 years old and blessed with two well-settled and caring grown children (one son and one daughter), who have each been blessed with two kids of their own, making me a grandma of 4 under 4; for which I'm very excited and grateful. Every day of my life, it gives me positive energy.

My marriage of 36 years fell apart six years ...Read more

Family Wounds and Forgiveness

Life Advice / Dear Annie /

Dear Annie: When I was 6 years old, my father left my mother for another woman who was 14 years his junior. She had actually been his secretary and had been with him for a couple of years before the divorce. My dad went so far as to even get an apartment for her in the city. She was 16 at the time.

Fast forward, he stayed married to her for ...Read more

 

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