Come on, isn’t it time to start appreciating your spouse?
Showing appreciation for your partner starts with just doing stuff around the house, without being asked or reminded.
What you need to know:
- Your spouse will love you more if you resist making a scene when they say something annoying or do something you don’t like.
- Make your goodbyes and greetings special.
- Stop what you’re doing and spend a few minutes together.
It is all too easy to take your spouse for granted. Somehow you’re always too busy to show them what they mean to you. Or maybe you’ve just got out of the habit. Perhaps you even find things like that a little awkward? Yet it matters.
Showing appreciation for your partner starts with just doing stuff around the house, without being asked or reminded. Taking out the trash, running an errand, doing one of their chores when they’ve had a bad day. Just doing simple stuff like that shows you care.
Offer your spouse the last biscuit, and ask if you can get them something while you’re going to the kitchen. Simple acts of kindness say it all way better than huge displays of affection. Just caring instead of keeping score.
Your spouse will love you more if you resist making a scene when they say something annoying or do something you don’t like. Just because they put up with your temper doesn’t make it any better. And cut out the scornful remarks and sarcasm. There’s a difference between being honest and always focusing on the negative.
Working hard
When your partner’s working hard, let them know you appreciate their efforts. Likewise when they’re cooking or doing the housework. And avoid criticising them for not doing something exactly the way you would. Resentment builds amazingly quickly!
If they call to say that they’ll be late, don’t get upset. Thank them for letting you know instead.
Tell your kids what you love about your spouse. Tell their family. Don’t let others disrespect them. And don’t compare your partner to other spouses, however nice they may be.
Don’t push the budget. If you can’t afford something, don’t buy it. And try not to complain about your standard of living or grumble about the things that you don’t have.
Make your goodbyes and greetings special. Stop what you’re doing and spend a few minutes together.
Set an early bedtime for your kids, and encourage them to be independent because learning to look after themselves means you and your spouse will have more time for each other.
Have a phone free hour every so often so you can focus on each other.
Flirt with each other. It’s all too easy to forget to enjoy yourselves when you’re married! Always make lovemaking fun, take the initiative, and suggest new ideas! And put sex on your schedule. That may sound unromantic, but it’s the best way to keep intimacy up to speed.
Read together
Plan a stay-at-home date night. Surprise your partner with a nice bottle and a takeaway and get close on the couch with a movie.
Walk and sit closer together. Snuggle up and read together. Give great eye contact. Actively listen to each other. Ask leading questions that get you both talking about your day.
Revisit where you first met and talk about what brought you together. Those memories have a magic about them that will keep you close.
