Come here or get it somewhere else.

It is not important where you get good information, it is only important that you get good information. As you can imagine, I am a little biased in my belief that good information is available to all of your right here. But I can assure you that this blog is not exhaustive nor does it cover many specific ideas and questions. So you may have to check out many sources in your endeavor to get the help you need for your marriage.

It is rarely difficult to understand the truth once you have found it. The work is in the finding of the truth. Once you have determined that you do in fact need help and information that you do not currently have, the next step is to locate the source or sources that posses what you are looking for.

As you can surely imagine, there are so many resources available on the web, through blogs and reference websites. Additionally, there are thousands of books available, many of which address topics ranging from very general to pin-point specific. And while I love the ease in which you can research specific topics on the web, there are times that nothing will be as beneficial as talking with someone directly. Whether that be a family member, a mentor, a pastor, or even a counselor. All of these can be very advantageous depending on your relationships and individual circumstances.

The first step is to acknowledge that you have a need. Second, that you are willing to do the work that will be required to bring benefit to your situation. Third you have to go to the source of the help. And finally, you have to implement your plan for remedy.

Take the time to write down as specific as you can be, what you think the problem is. Try to outline the cause and effect of the problem. Look at both parties to the situation and honestly examine what your own involvement is in the problem and the solution. You might find that in doing so you will be able to answer some of the questions you have on what you can do right now to help.

The little things

It is so easy to overlook all the great things we have in our life. All the great things that we have in our marriage. All the great things we have in our wife. They are often the little things that go unnoticed.

When we fail to see the little things that bring us joy and happiness,  we put ourselves at risk of losing them forever. Robert Brault reminds us, “Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.” How important is that to us in our marriage? How many people have suffered through the pain of divorce to only realize they failed to see and appreciate all the great things they had in their marriage?

We often take so much for granted in our wives that we fail to see what our lives would be like without them. We are so focused on what they do wrong, or what they don’t do for us, that we miss all the things the do right, and all the things they do.

How aware are you of what your wife does for you? Does your wife go to work everyday just like you and help provide for your family? Does your wife buy you clothes? Does your wife do most of the cooking? Does your wife do most of the cleaning? Does your wife do most of the work in taking care of the kids needs everyday?

If you are focused on what you are unhappy with in your wife, you will fail to see the lengthy list of things that she does everyday to support you. To care for you. To meet your needs. Don’t be that guy.

Make a list of all the things your wife does everyday, every week, every month, and every year for you and your family. When you are feeling that she isn’t meeting all your needs, take the list out and look at it. Then go up to her and thank her for everything she does do. You will quickly find yourself being thankful for the little things instead of complaining about the others. And with your thankfulness you will find you will keep your wife, your marriage and all the little things that make them great.

I know they’re broken

From some of the comments I have received, it seems that it has been perceived in my writing that I don’t think that women cause as much strife in a marriage as men do, or that I think they are blameless, or are somehow perfect. Nothing could be further from the truth. I am crystal clear that women cause damage in relationships just like men do.

And with the knowledge of my wife’s imperfection, I choose to love her anyway. Just like she does me. One of the best quotes I have ever heard about accepting people with all their faults was coined by Bernard Meltzer. He said, “A true friend is someone who thinks you are a good egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked.”

That is the essence of any good relationship. That is the only way to have a good marriage. Acknowledge that you both are broken. That you both have flaws. That you both are imperfect. Then choose to love your wife even with her imperfections.

Over time, after years of strife and struggles in a marriage, it is easy to only see the problems or cracks as it were. But that is only a result of exhaustion and frustration. That is not all that is left in your marriage. It has just become the focus of the marriage for too many people.

Also, sometimes our perspective has just gotten a little out of focus. Sometimes things that are small and insignificant at first, will somehow become big and monumental. Sometimes the crack on the egg is perceived to be more like a crevice to wide to cross. But if you could remove yourself from the heat of the fire, you might not even think many things are worth all the consternation. I know that for me, it is in some of those less than perfect ways of my wife, that I find her most attractive. It is her idiosyncrasies, that make me laugh and that I can count on.

Make a point of acknowledging the fact that your wife is less than perfect. (Not out loud. Keep that one to yourself.) Than make a decision to look at her for all she is. Not just seeing the cracks in her shell. Once you get your perspective right, you might find that she is a lot closer to having been made over easy, rather than the scrambled you thought you were seeing.

You take my breath away

As many of you know, my wife Janine has changed my life in so many ways that I often have a hard time getting my hands around it all. But what I can clearly see above all else is who she is as a person and all her abilities and accomplishments. She is truly amazing. She is so talented. She is kind to everyone. She is a great mother. She is a great friend.

I was reading a tweet that reminded me that, “Life isn’t about the number of breaths we take, but the moments that take our breath away.” That is truly how I live today. Janine takes my breath away almost everyday. She does this in myriad ways. I want to share some of them with you in hopes that you will see opportunities to have your breath taken away by your wife and the things she does.

The easiest one for me to recall is that her beauty takes my breath away. Yes, I mean her physical appearance and form. I can honestly say that each day, when I look at her, I am some how more attracted to her. She is more beautiful to me everyday. I don’t know how this can be or how to explain it. But when I look at her each day, I am overwhelmed by how she appears to be more beautiful than the day before. I know that I thought the same thing yesterday, but looking at her, I am certain that I have never seen her look as beautiful as she does today. She takes my breath away.

When I watch her play with the kids, so loving, so compassionate, so selfless, I am amazed by this woman. She loves in a way I cannot understand or comprehend. She loves completely. She loves with her whole body and soul. She takes my breath away.

When I am in a bad mood, she overlooks it and tries to make it better. She does something to make me laugh. Or she does something to change the direction of my thoughts. She changes my mood. She is like no one I have ever known. She takes my breath away.

When things are tough at work, or money is too tight, she tells me how proud of me she is. She tells me how she has faith in me. She tells me how she trusts me. She makes it about our love and our family, not the situation we are in. She takes my breath away.

When she is hurting or is sad, she tells me how she is feeling. She tells me her fears. She doesn’t point the finger or place the blame on me. She just authentically opens her soul and talks to me. She takes my breath away.

I know that it is all these things that she does that makes her more beautiful to me everyday and that takes my breath away all over again. I am so blessed to have a life of moments that take my breath away.

I hope you will take notice of your wife and what she does. It is not that anyone is perfect or is able to do it right every time, but if you will allow yourself to be taken by her acts of kindness, her acts of love, you will be blessed with a life of moments that take your breath away.

Know when to be quiet

There is an amazing phenomenon that seems to be universal with men, that is , we seem to miraculously have an opinion on everything, be convinced we are right about it all and have an unending need to let everyone else know. While I am not one to buy into the image of men being stupid, unneeded, or inept, that is so often portrayed on TV and in the movies, I do know that we at least occasionally give some good ammunition to build these stereotypes from.

When it comes to having to say something about everything your wife says or does, or in helping her correct her opinion that you are sure is somehow incorrect, I think it is best that we remember the old proverb, “Better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than to open it and remove all doubt.”

It is not that we need to keep our mouths shut in every situation. That is ridiculous. We need to be a wise counselor, a trusted adviser and a valued part of our marriage and family but it doesn’t have to be on every comment made or heard in our home. Our wives are very adept at handling most situations with our family, friends and neighbors and don’t need to be second guessed at every turn.

I know there has been many times my wife will recount some of the things that have happened throughout her day and I have quickly told her how she should have done it different or better. Often times, she wasn’t asking for my opinion or my analysis of her dealings but rather was just talking with me to share her life and be a part of mine. On many occasions, nothing I said would change what she did or more to the point, did it really need any changing. I was just sticking my opinion where it served no purpose. Unless making her feel stupid or inept was my purpose.

As I am trying to do, I hope that each of you will take the time to listen to your wives. Be a friend that she can talk to and tell things to. If she doesn’t ask for your opinion or for your advice on how to deal with something, keep it to yourself. You are not the hall monitor or the relationship police. If you are a trusted ear that she can talk to, she will tell you everything you need to know about her. And if you are trusted, she will listen to you when you have something to say to help her in any way.

To be desired

Although this post will tell you more about what women need and want from us as it closes, it gets there by looking at what men want as well. As much as we men want to be strong, confident, and self-sufficient, the truth is we want to be desired. We want to be needed. We want to be loved. We may not admit it to anyone or even be willing to admit it to ourselves, but that doesn’t change the fact that it is true.

Robert Frost said, “Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired.” It is true for all of us. Not just women as many of us would like to think.

Knowing this is true allows us to make ourselves more desirable. Sure, we already know the things the world tells us we can do to become more desirable. We can lose weight. We can exercise. We can work out. We can buy fancy clothes and drive fancy cars. But these things only make us desirable to those who don’t know us.

It is who we truly and authentically are that can have the most dramatic impact on our desirability to our wives. It is how we love. It is how treat others. It is how we handle our money. It is how we act when few or none can see us.

Our wives are witnesses everyday to the men we are, or unfortunately the men we are not. They see everything about us, or see that we have things we are hiding from the world, or worse, from them.

But there is hope for all of us to become more desirable.  We can change our actions if we know what our wives desire. We can shape ourselves into that which they most crave. Fortunately, most women want many of the same things. They want a man that can listen without having to fix everything. They want a man that will be affectionate. They want a man that will be patient. They want a man that will stand up for his wife. They want a man that will be a great father. They want a man that will forgive easily. They want a man that will admit to a mistake and say he is sorry. They want a man that will be considerate of her thoughts and feelings.

None of the things they want will cost you a dime. They will only cost you your time, your effort, your commitment. And in return, you will gain what it is that you truly desired all along. To be desired.

Gratitude

I was reading a post on another blog this morning and was hit squarely between the eyes with something I have failed to mention here. That being, the best way to love your wife, to build your marriage, and to change your perspective is to be a beacon of gratitude.

In all the lists and ideas I have espoused here, I have failed to mention that being grateful is one of the easiest ways to show your wife how much you love her. For those of you who might feel they have nothing to be grateful for, or thankful about, let me remind you of some of the many things that you can be thankful for. This list will not be for you to check and see if she hit them all. It is merely a list that you might find a single thing you can appreciate.

Did your wife say I love you today?

Did she make a meal for you?

Did she make you laugh?

Did she go to work?

Did she stay home and care for your kids?

Did she do homework with your kids?

Did she go to the bank?

Did she go to the grocery store?

Did she do your laundry?

Did she pay some bills?

Did she buy a gift for someone from both of you?

Did she care for one of your relatives?

Did she make a bed or clean the house?

Did she give you grace?

Did she overlook something you did?

Did she help avoid an argument?

Did she care for your sick child?

Did she take one of your kids to the doctor?

Did she hug your kids?

Did she listen to you about your day?

Did she help your daughter mend her broken heart?

Did she take the kids to practice or a game?

Did she call you to see how your day was going?

Did she welcome you home?

These are not things that your wife should or has to do for you. If she did them, she did them out of love whether you realized it or not. I could write another hundred things that wives do everyday for their husbands without any gratitude. Without any recognition. Without as much as anyone even noticing.

Take some time everyday to tell your wife thank you. Tell her specifically what she did that you appreciate. Tell her you love her for all she does. Tell her your sorry for neglecting to show her your appreciation in the past. Be humble. Admit that you have been amiss in this area before but that you will not do that again.

In showing your gratitude, you will build her confidence. You will give value and purpose to all that she does. She will likely want to do more and more as she sees your appreciation. As you both do this in gratitude you will rebuild and strengthen your marriage. That’s a great return for very little investment.

Chocolate. Now that’s love.

I don’t know anyone that would argue the point that love is being loyal. Or that love is being honest. Or that love is being committed and faithful. But sometimes all our wives need is a thoughtful box of chocolates to reaffirm how much they mean to us.

Charles M. Schulz opined a great truth about love saying, “All we need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.” I think it might have been better said as, “All we need is love. And a little chocolate now and then proves that we do.”

It seems so easy for me to write about deep and thought provoking ideas when describing ways to love your wife. But I never want to diminish or overlook that there are so many ways to say “I love you” that don’t even require great pondering or planing. It is not in the depth of our thoughts that we show our love but in the fact that we are thinking of our wives in any way.

Love is not complicated. But loving our wives becomes complicated when there are years of hurt, years of pain, years of strife that cover our ability to see clearly. To see that the woman we share our home with today, the woman that we share our bed with today, the woman that we argued with today, is in fact the same woman that we fell in love with and married. Over time, we begin to believe that this woman is not a person at all but more a personification of the problems in our life. A personification of the painful words she might have said or things she might have done.

Starting today, set down the past hurts. Remember what you loved about her when your relationship started and grew. Make a list of all the things that you once admired and adored in your wife. Focus on that list and be thankful for your wife and those qualities in her. Look for those again in her. Then go and buy her a box of chocolates and tell her you love her.

Watcha lookin’ at

Why is it that so many guys are willing to take advantage of the old saying that boys will be boys? This little ditty is not an accurate description of how men are destined to act. It is more an overused and tired excuse for allowing ourselves and for women to minimize the things we do that are unacceptable.

One of the worst offenses of these objectionable acts is how guys will look at or should I say checkout other women when in the company of their wives. Setting aside the absolute disrespect for the women that we love, is it really that hard to be completely in the moment and the experience of the time we share with our sweethearts. Are we really so willing to be relegated to the class of nothing more than an animal that we accept that we don’t have any self-control?

We have all heard the excuses that are bandied about. It’s okay to checkout the menu as long as I eat at home, and there’s nothing wrong with looking as long as I don’t touch. While I know that every man can look and appreciate a beautiful woman without having any desire or intent of anything more than the appreciation itself, I also know that most men add in a measure of lust in every glance. What I don’t understand is how we can find any reason to allow even an innocent acknowledgment of another women’s beauty in the presence of our wives.

To even be aware of another women’s physical appearance while in the company of the one woman we each married is not only disrespectful, it is harmful to their self-esteem, their feeling of safety with their husband, and detrimental to our relationships in every way. Even if it is in the smallest way, it sends a signal that you are always looking for something better. That our wives have to not only match up to every other woman out there but they must exceed them to keep our interests. That it is no longer enough to be the best wife, mother, friend, and lover that they can be for us, they also must somehow compete for our attention with every girl that walks by.

Don’t be that guy. Give your complete attention to your wife when you are with her. Give her your thoughts, give her your actions, and give her your respect. Above all, give her the safety of knowing that you only have eyes for her. That there is not another woman in the world that could take you away from her for any reason. Give her the man that she gave her life to when she married you and gave you hers.

Catch up on your reading

I recently did something with my wife that I have never done before. Prior to this it had never even crossed my mind that she would enjoy it. I have always been an avid reader. I cannot get enough of it. I love everything about reading. Whether it be the Bible, a novel, a magazine, a newspaper, believe it or not, even a cereal box will do in a pinch. One night Janine asked me what I was reading. She never knows because I use a Kindle to do most of my reading. For those of you who don’t know what that is, it is an electronic book. I tell everyone it is the greatest material gift I have ever received. I got it from, guess who, Janine. I had to be truthful with her and all of you, so I will tell you, as I told her; I was reading the second book of the Twilight series. She looked at me and asked if I would read it to her.

I really can’t explain why this was such a great experience, but I can tell you that it was. Over the next few days I read the second half of the book to her after giving her the background of what had already happened in the story. I held her in one arm while I held the book in the other and just read. At the risk of hyperbole, it was one of the most romantic and special times we have ever shared together. The book was a little silly and is written more for teenagers than what I would normally enjoy but we had such a good time reading it together.

Now I am not suggesting that each of you start reading to your spouses. I know that reading is not something that everyone enjoys as much as I do. But I would suggest that you try new things with your wife. Get out of your comfort zone and experience things with her. Take her to a museum, take her to a play or musical, or maybe take her to a park and play catch. Just try new things.

It is not as important what you do with your wife as it is important that you just do things with her. Spend time with her. Share things with her. Show her how important she is to you and that you love to just be with her. If you can’t come up with anything else, stop at the book store and pick up a book. You just might find yourself reading your way to happiness.