Successful Hands Transplant, Yearns for Wife's Touch

Jeff Kepner became the first person in the United States to successfully have two hands transplanted. He can already move his fingers and grab a tennis ball, but what he really wants to do is feel his wife's touch. The doctors say that the nerves haven't yet grown back and it will take some time--about an inch a month. The surgery took place in May at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and took nine hours. Jeff lost his hands and feet a decade ago to a bacterial infection and didn't want the surgery at first, however his wife Valarie Kepner was persistent. She had contacted UPMC without telling her husband. She wanted him to be able to regain some of his independence after being on her schedule for years. Obviously, Jeff came around. Read more here.

Daily Sex Good for Sperm

For couples trying to conceive, they should have sex everyday. Aside from the obvious, a new study by Dr. David Greening of Sydney IVF, an Australian center for infertility and in vitro fertilization treatment, says daily sex improves the quality of the sperm. Dr. Greening studied 118 men with above-average damage to their sperm DNA. He found that after they ejaculated for seven consecutive days, the quality of sperm increased--dropping 8 percent in the amount of damaged sperm. His advice for those of you ready to do some baby making? "It seems safe to conclude that couples with relatively normal semen parameters should have sex daily for up to a week before the ovulation date," he says.

Public Servant Injustice to Marriage

Seriously, what's wrong with our government officials. Today it was revealed that South Carolina governor Mark Sanford had cheated on his wife with a woman from Argentina. Earlier this month Sen. John Ensign of Nevada admitted to having an affair with a woman who had worked for him. Oh, there's also Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa; former New York governor, Eliot Spitzer; his replacement David Paterson; presidential candidate John Edwards; and let's not forget former Idaho Senator Larry Craig who was caught soliciting sex in a bathroom stall at an airport. Of course the lineage goes on much further than that, but you get the point.

Why is this? And don't say it's the pressure, there are tens if not hundreds of thousands of people who work in jobs where life and death stare them in the face every day. Perhaps since it's okay for the government to meddle in military sexual behavior with the "don't ask, don't tell" rule, maybe the government should implement a new rule for all government officials that says if you can't stay faithful to your own spouse, how can the people you're supposed to govern trust you; therefore you will be immediately discharged from your government position if caught cheating? What are your thoughts?

Lose Weight on a Budget, Run!

USA Today is running (no pun intended) a weight-loss challenge and have selected Paul and Amy Kreidler of Glendale, Mo. to share their story. Combined, the couple dropped 160 pounds; Paul shed 120 pounds and Amy lost 40. In short, the couple blamed their weight gain on their hectic lifestyles and poor choices. Between work and raising kids, the couple often found themselves grabbing fast food. The couple decided they needed a change. They made two moves that helped them lose weight and become a happier, healthier couple. They started to eat healthier food and run. Amy, who doesn't like running as much as her husband says it's the quickest and best way to get her workout in. "It's free. It's fast. You put your shoes on, you warm up, you stretch and you go."

What's your weight loss secret?

Become a Sensuous Wife

We want to help out our friends over at Sensuous Wife who have just launched their new store (click here) with the slogan "pleasure for wives and the husbands who love them." Their store offers a little bit of everything including oils, music, edible paint, toys, furniture, books and much more. Not sure if this is just for the launch of the store, but most of their Liberator products, for example, are being discounted. The Equus is currently dicounted a whopping $111. While the current economy has many people budgeting, always remember that your spouse and your relationship is always worth investing in, whether that's through date nights, flowers or a new product to keep that spark alive. Once you've checked out the new store, follow Sensuous Wife on Twitter at @sensuouswife.

Awesome Visualization of Credit Crisis

If you have a hard time wrapping your head around all the terms flying around along with how credit or housing connects with the collapse that's taken place on Wall Street, watch this!

Our Experts are Busy

Today, Dr. Karen Sherman spoke about stress on Robin Hardy's show. The show aired 11:00PT/ 2:00ET. If you missed the show, be sure to listen online at www.BlogTalkRadio.com/Robin-Hardy. Also part of the conversation is another one of our regular contributors, Debbie Mandel.

In other news, Dr. Noelle Nelson in promotion of her new book, "Your Man is Wonderful," is running a contest. To enter, pick just one of her suggestions, put it into practice for a week in your life, and then share with us what happened. Submissions will be based on the follow criteria: originality 25%, attitude of contestant 25%, adherence to the contest theme & suggestions 25%, and the change that takes place by following the suggestions 25%. Every person who enters the “Toad to Prince” contest will receive a free PDF download of Dr. Noelle Nelson’s book "Everyday Miracles Vol. 1." The grand prize winner will receive a $1,000 travel voucher to use for a romantic getaway for 2 people. Visit, www.toadtoprince.com to enter.

Lastly, Dr. Trina Read sent me an interesting article the other day on male contreception from MSN. Click here to read the article. Dr. Read would like to add to this conversation and we'll have a podcast with her in the coming weeks speaking about this subject, so please check back often.

Military Wife Writes About Army Marriage

Lily Burana has written a book detailing her life as a newlywed and her struggle to reconcile a provocative past with the pious pressures of being a soldier's spouse. Her book is titled, "I Love a Man in Uniform." Burana, who in 2002 married an intelligence officer in West Point's history department, discusses how she dealt with her husband being deployed to Iraq just eight weeks after their wedding. Her husband is only referred to as "Mike" in the book to maintain his privacy. The book delves into ways that war changed her relationship with Mike and the lonely holidays and other candid events that go along with being a military life. For example, Burana was a stripper in her past life (before she met Mike) and because of that, the military canceled her book signing at West Point. Burana has a favorite saying for situations like that, "I'm an Army wife. I'm not the Army's wife." Read more here.

Chat with Dr. Karen Sherman About Body's Barometer

On Wednesday night (May 6th) you can hear Dr. Karen Sherman speak with Sharon Kay, host at Fisk University WFSK 88.1FM in Tennessee. You can either listen in at www.wfsk.org or call in at 615-329-8810. Dr. Sherman says, "We'll be discussing 'Do You Read Your Body's Barometer for Making Choices?'" The discussion starts at 5:00PM (CT)/ 6:00PM (ET) will refer to Chapters 3 - 6 in her book, "Mindfulness and The Art of Choice: Transform Your Life."

Cage Fighting Makes for a Happy Marriage

Do you train in any sport with your spouse?