My husband is a native Italian. And although my family is from Italy, too, I was born and raised in the United States. At the moment, my husband is in the process of getting his green card -- and learning English at Berlitz. As I write this blog, he is reading an English-language newspaper (that he got for free on the streets of New York after his English classes). In fact, for the last week, my husband has been going to school in the morning and coming home to do homework in the evening. He has also been talking to me in English -- for the first time in the five years since we began dating.

Why am I telling you all this? Simply because I'm proud of my husband. And I think spouses don't point out the pride they feel for one another often enough. Tell me, when did your husband or wife make you the proudest?

My jaw is still wide open after watching The Today Show this morning and hearing about Dalia Dippolito, who allegedly plotted to have her husband of six months, Michael Dippolito, murdered by a gun for hire. She hired an undercover police officer, who caught a woman alleged to be her on tape requesting that her husband be killed and mentioning that it would make her happy. The South Florida Sun Sentinel is reporting that Dalia wanted her husband dead, so she could keep their townhouse and $240,000 in cash that he had given to her. Couldn't you just get that in a divorce settlement? Why murder the man you married?

Michael might not have had the best judgment. He met Dalia when he hired her through an escort service in October 2008. Although he had suspicions after money disappeared and people were leaving notes on his car asking for money, he stayed with Dalia because he was growing ever closer to her and her family.

Is your jaw still hanging low? After doing more research on the case online, I read in the Sun Sentinel that in Broward and Palm Beach counties in Florida alone, about one murder-for-hire case comes through the courts each year -- and most of the time it is spouses, exes, and lovers who are doing the hiring. I can't believe that murdering your spouse is on the top of some people's to-do lists. Why marry the person in the first place? How could you even consider harming the person with whom you've chosen to share your life, even if you have fallen out of love or are broke? Money doesn't seem like a good motive to me and certainly not a mere $240,000 and a house.

Wordless Wednesday Wedding

Real estate heirs Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner recently wed, but they faced a bump in the road in early 2008, when Kushner's family reportedly had concerns that Trump was not Jewish. Soon after the pair reunited, Trump converted to Judaism, which requires discipline, commitment, and of course faith. In fact, Trump and Kushner were wed in a Jewish ceremony in New Jersey. A few days after the wedding, the groom's parents hosted a Sheva Brachot, a Jewish wedding blessing. It was another celebration for an ambitious couple that now shares the same religion.

The love story of Trump and Kushner reminded me of many conversations I shared with friends while philosophizing in the hallways of our college dorm at the George Washington University in the late 1990s. I had many Jewish, Catholic, and Hindu friends. Our religions were completely different. Although most of us were willing -- and did in fact -- date outside of our religion, we ultimately ended up marrying people of the same faith (and in my case the same culture, too). Often back then, however, we discussed the possibility of changing our religion for our husband or wife. I even wrote a feature about this very subject for my college newspaper. My friend Seth Greenberg always said, "You can't pick who you fall in love with." I always remembered his words. So true! But you can change your religion for him or her. Would you change your religion for love?

More Wordless Wednesday Photos from Other Bloggers

Husbands and wives often opt to pool their money and share a joint bank account, which has both their names on it. Nowadays, however, many women are making their own way and want to protect themselves -- and their assets -- in case of divorce or abuse, and they choose to open a separate account for themselves, even if they also share one with their husband. Some couples only have separate accounts. Some banks encourage couples to keep some money separate.

In fact, Nicole Collins, an outraged newlywed, who happens to be an editor at The New York Times, recently griped in the newspaper about her bank trying to convince her to get a separate account from her husband. The story she shared created lots of debate about whether this was the right thing for women to do. Some readers seem to see it as a feminist issue, and others think that separate accounts means a lack of trust and faith in your marriage. What do you think? Should married people have joint bank accounts, separate accounts, or both? Let us know by taking this poll.