My hubby and I have a pretty basic routine when it comes to our Monday-Friday and most people do. I have worked out our routine to where we fit important things in our day that I think all couples should try and make room for. They seem to be pretty basic things but not everyone gets to fit in these things. On paper they don’t seem major and are probably the first things you cut out if you are having a hurried day. We are on a second shift schedule but these are things no matter what shift you are on, you can typically fit them in somewhere. Everyone is different so some of you may not be able to, but I suggest trying them when you can. They are small things but make a big difference.

1.) Pray together: The couple that prays together, stays together. It’s an intimate moment between you and your spouse and God. You become one when it comes to your needs and it gives you a moment to express thankfulness together as one. also, two people praying for one thing is always better than one. You should pray for your marriage, pray for your family, and common goals. Check out this post focused on marriage specific prayers if you need guidance. You can do this when you wake up (a great way to start the day) but only if you won’t rush it, you want to be able to take your time with this and get into the moment so if mornings are rushed, try it before bed, the middle of the day, before a meal, whenever you can squeeze it in!

2.) Share a meal together: I don’t know about you, but me and my husband have a common love of food and really bond over it. Our favorite thing to do is go out to eat together, we don’t do this daily but we do have a meal of some sort together each day. It’s a good time to enjoy something together in the day. Even if you plop down in front of the TV and eat, it’s a shared relaxed moment which is important to enjoy each day.

3.) Talk about your day: This is the most important one. My husband and I always check in through out the day with each other and make sure we are having a good day but when my husband comes home we talk about our day in detail. Talking about your day not only helps you personally- to get things off your chest, but it keeps each other in the loop. Imagine going through each day not knowing what your spouse is doing and experiencing and going through, that part of the world would be dark to you, and as much time as those who work spend at work, it’s a big part of their life. So it’s amazing to connect and feel part of that piece of their life. It’s so important to feel connected on all levels in marriage.

I spend the day looking forward to these moments with my husband. We both do our own things through out the day, as he works and I do my things at home, so it’s amazing to sit and connect with him a few moment’s out of the day. I try to have as many of these moment’s as possible but life does require certain things from us, like work schedules. But if you put your foot forward and do these things, even on the most quick and busy schedule, you can stay connected which I cannot express enough of the importance of.

What do you and your husband do daily? Sometimes routine’s aren’t a bad thing! They help keep the important things in check.

From Expectation to Appreciation

Ever since I found out I was pregnant and began to experience the fun that is nausea, food aversions, and a crazy strong sense of smell, I have been very appreciative of my husband. As a stay at home wife, I cook, clean, and do those kinds of things. But since food makes me want to run for the hills (I know, a very sad thing for me), the kitchen has pretty much become a torture chamber for me, so I rarely visit it. And when I do have to, it is not pretty as the smells of the food attack me and turn my stomach. So my husband has picked up my daily tasks also, when it comes to the kitchen anyways. He cooks his own food- well pops it in the oven. They preach eating healthy and cooking all of these grain and protein filled foods but never ever do they mention how difficult it is in your first trimester. I am being real enough to admit to you that frozen and ready to eat foods have taken over my home the last few weeks. The doctor says eat what you can hold down, for me that’s mini chocolate donuts and popsicles. Thank goodness for prenatal vitamins.

As I wait for this mean first trimester to pass me, I am learning the ropes of leaning on my husband when I am weak. We have usually had our own roles in our marriage. He earns money, I take care of our home. Now he is earning money, grabbing me water, toasting poptarts at midnight for me, and baking his own food before work- as well as packing his lunch. At first, I felt bad. I felt bad that I had to abandon what I felt is my assigned tasks. But my husband comforted me over it, and still does. Letting me know that he is happy to do it, and that I’m growing his child inside of me- which is a big job in itself. It is true, that in our marriage vows we talk about in sickness and in health, the highs and lows, richer or poorer. And what I have thought about in my many days in bed is that I am very thankful that I have a husband who upholds his vows with a smile on his face, but that I shouldn’t chalk this all up to him keeping his vows. He is doing these things for me out of love, and if he were to just go get me a glass of water on any other day without the sickness and growing a life form inside of me, would I be as grateful as I am when I am sickened by the very thought of doing such a simple task on my own? I would say thank you and mean it, but I wouldn’t look into it so much to see just how the little things in life do speak volumes.

I think as a married couple it’s so easy to take things for granted, to just expect certain things. I think when you sit and think about the reasons for actions, what’s behind them, a small gesture will bring much more appreciation to our significant others than before. We may do this already at times, but it’s easy to get caught up in life and associate nice gestures with expectations. I am showering my husband with thank you’s as he helps me with everything. A husband should contribute to his home and help, so I’m not just thanking him for feeding himself or loving me, but I am thanking him for contributing and letting him know it’s appreciated and not just expected of him. My husband has always helped me, even before baby, and I know he will continue to without complaint and will out of love. I just want to turn things that may be expected as the duty of a spouse, into things to appreciate and love also, not just take it as part of the package. And this goes from husband to wife as well. We should all learn not to JUST expect anything but to love and appreciate everything as well.

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This weeks post: reader choice!

Hello, lovely readers. This week I am bringing it to you guys! What would you rather see up on the blog this week, a delicious yet simple summer drink (alcohol free) or the Mexican dinner I made today for my husband and I? Comment below and let me know, your choice may be featured on tomorrow’s post! 

Date night indoors

Minus all of the getting dressed up because I am still recovering from this awful bronchitis. It’s the holiday season which means it’s time to start saving up money for Christmas and staying more at home. That doesn’t mean we have to compromise on having nice little date nights, we can just have them at a fraction of the cost in our own home. Needless to say, we enjoyed it. It was scrumptious! Steaks, baked potatoes, and rolls with hand whipped homemade honey butter. All for about $20 vs $50.

What did you guys have for dinner this weekend?

The Perfect Oven

How amazing is this stove? My friend pinned it on Pinterest today and I fell in love. I didn’t even know a stove like this even existed! It has everything you need.

Sneak Peak: 2 in 1 dinner!

I cannot wait to share this amazing dinner menu with you. Not only will your husband die for it, but it’s easy on your budget and will feed you for days!

Reader Requests: What do you want to see?

The things I write about come from many different places. Sometimes I’m dying for chocolate and want to create a new brownie recipe, sometimes I’m asked for marriage advice, sometimes I go through something personally. Whatever sparks my ideas, I want to share it with you guys, fellow wives along the journey of marriage that often have some of the same obstacles ranging from a picky eater husband to a stressed out husband (see my post about Stressed Out Husband’s here ).

I wanted to reach out to you, my readers, the people who benefit from my articles, to see what content you guys feel the need to see. What are some issues you have that you would like some guidance on, what are some recipes you would like to know how to make, what are some household tips you need, and the list goes on because we as wives are very busy with all the many different roles we hold. 

Please comment your requests below or see my contact page on how to contact me privately with your suggestions.

I appreciate you all as readers and as fellow wives. Thank you for any questions and suggestions you may have and I look forwarding to writing about what you guys want to hear about!

How to help a Stressed Out Husband

Stress Sucks. You’ve had it, I’ve had it, and guess what, our husbands will have it. Nothing is as disheartening as seeing your normally happy husband be unhappy, edgy, grumpy, and stressed out. It’s so easy to get frustrated when we tell them it’s going to be ok but they continue to be stressed out. Sometimes you may get tired of telling him that it’s going to be fine, because you feel that he is just ignoring you or simply doesn’t believe you. Instead of just ignoring his complaints or his moods, here’s some tips on how to tackle a stressful husband and get him back to the happy man you married.

Doing things (or all) from each of these categories will help your husband feel more at ease and stress free before you know it. You’ll have the smiles back in no time.

Let’s take a look at our first category:

Psychical: here are some things you can psychically do to help turn your husbands frown, upside down.

• Long Hugs: Something about a truly intimate, loving hug, puts our husbands at ease.They feel safe in our arms which can help chase the stress away.
• Little Treats: If you’re out at the store, pick him up his favorite candy bar, or a copy of his favorite movie. Something small that you know he will personally enjoy. There’s nothing more exciting than getting a small, unexpected, gift. This is sure to put a smile on his face. We love it when they do it for us, so let’s do it for them.
• Massages: Stress literally takes a tole on your body. Around my wedding I was so stressed out I developed “stress knots” in my body. I went and got a massage (courtesy of my loving husband) and wah-lah, I had never felt more at ease. Those knots were painful and they aren’t the only thing stress can do to harm your health. So treat your hubby to a massage or better yet, go buy some oils and look up some massage techniques on Pinterest. Dim the lights and get to de-stressing!
• Public Praise: In the era of social media, take to Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and give him a shout out. Letting him know just how much you appreciate and love him. This will give him a sense of confidence and let him know that you are proud of him, even though he hasn’t been feeling the best about himself.
• Give him something to look forward to: You can let him know that morning that you are making his favorite food later, or set up an exciting event you know he will be thrilled about. This gives him something exciting to look forward to and keep his mind on rather than focusing on something stressful. 
• Be silly: From corny jokes to tickling him. Be silly with him. Laughing is a natural de-stresser that is sure to take his mind from stress to happiness!

Mental/Emotional: these are things that you can do to help him let go of his stress involving the mind and emotions.

• Pray for him: pray for God to ease his stress. Sometimes God can make changes that we can’t. You should also encourage your husband to pray about his situation.
• Stay Strong: part of your vows as husband and wife was to be strong when the other is weak. I know he has for you before, now you can for him. As dis-heartening as it is to have a stressed out husband, you joining in on the stress will only make him stress about that. Don’t add to the mix.
• Point out his good qualities: remind him about the things that make him so great. When you’re stressed you can feel pretty crummy, lift up his confidence. Confidence can make a big difference in any situation. 
• Point out his Past Accomplishments: if he is stressed about something that has failed or that he’s scared will fail, remind him of the great things he has done in the past. This can help him feel optimistic about the situation. If you’ve done it before, you can do it again.
• Be on his Team: it can be so easy to explain the other side of the situation. Rather it be why his boss did something or why something happened. This can sometimes rub off the wrong way even if you are just trying to shed some light. So make sure he knows you are on his team, agree with him. Let him know you think it sucks too. Then bring in your thoughts on why something may have happened. Make sure to start the statement off with “Maybe..” so it doesn;t sound so factual, then follow it up with your thoughts. Do this after he knows that you’re on his side and let him know you’re trying to find an unharmful explanation. 
• Be considerate: sit and think about what you would want to hear if you were in this situation and what would make you feel better. Try these out on your husband. It’s so easy to assume we know what’s best for them and what’s going to work, when it really may be something different. Give them what you think you may need, be it space or a long talk.
• Let him Vent: encourage him to talk through the situation with you. Talking through and releasing your issues out loud can truly make a difference. Holding in your emotions is not good at all and only progresses your stress.

It can be easy to lose patience when your husband isn’t happy and it can be so easy to become discouraged when he doesn’t just perk up when we tell him it’s going to be ok. Fight those impatient feelings and don’t let yourself get frustrated. Remember that a marriage isn’t always 50/50. Sometimes we need our husbands to be strong, and sometimes, they need us to be strong. A lifetime is a long time and there will be so many things that will cause our husbands and ourselves to become stressed out. This is where we pick each other up, refer to this list, and make it our mission to make the stress chip away.

Where there are stressful moments, there are even happier moments to be had. Hang in there Dear Wife, Hubby will be happy again before you know it.

Be sure to keep this list on hand for the next time your husband gets a little stressed out or keep it to pass it on to a girlfriend that may be struggling with this issue. Subscribe to The Wife’s Life so you can always come back to this list when you need it and have access to all of the other wonderful wife advice coming your way.

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stayed tuned for my famous potato soup recipe coming this week. It’s a soup your husband will LOVE. We never have leftovers. Which is saying a lot for a soup.