"Thou shalt never have to wash laundry again."

I remember years ago, when my dad was telling family members about an incident that happened once when he tried to help my mom do laundry. By mistake, he used cat litter instead of laundry detergent! The point of that story was to share laughs and it worked. Everyone laughed including me, except I’m embarrassed to say that I added my own unnecessary sarcasm. I stated that it would have never happened if he helped mom around the house more often. Ouch! I know, I should have been slapped. My grandpa did give me a surprised look and for a moment I thought, did I cross a line? However, my conclusion was that he just did not know that my dad and I could tease each other like that.

Nearly a decade later, I remember that comment and I feel bad about it! I am now married to a man that is similar to my dad in so many ways. One of the similarities is that he is such a hard working man. Sometimes, I tell him how nice it is to have a husband to do all of the “manly” chores. I could learn to fire up the grill, or fix a running toilet, but I probably never will. The fact is that my husband does such a great job and it feels nice to let him take care of me. He does things for me that I do not really like or care to do and I do the same for him. For instance, the housework is my job. He works so hard outside of our home that I rarely ask him to lift a finger inside. Sure, he can take care of the plumbing or hang up frames, but when it comes to cleaning and laundry he would rather not. That is okay with me. I enjoy doing it – for him! I respect and love my husband so much that I’d rather him never have to lift the laundry detergent again and my guess is that my mom felt the same way.

This post is linked to Marriage Mondays

Agree to Disagree

My husband and I had a disagreement a few months into our marriage. So minor in fact, that I do not even remember what it was about. I do remember that I stayed in another room for about 20 minutes. I chose to be angry and to stay hurt. It is true. I was fully aware that I made the choice to stay mad. Our emotions do not control us, we control them. Staying angry is a choice that we make. After 20 minutes of thinking, I began emptying the dishwasher. As he passed through the kitchen, we both looked up at each other. I knew that we were both being stubborn, so I smiled. He smiled back, walked over, and hugged me. We apologized and agreed that we should not let our stubbornness get in the way next time.

Any relationship is bound to have arguments. They can be unavoidable at times. Finances, stress, lack of sleep, children, and so many other issues can affect our dispositions. However, minor disagreements can often create future problems in the relationship, because one person chooses to harbor negative feelings. I have seen couples argue about what to do on a Friday night and then ignore each other for days. It is crazy, but it happens. Holding on to anger only results in unnecessary pain, and anger is bad for the body! Speak your mind, then agree to disagree. Life is easier when we allow little disagreements to blow over.