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Do You Practice Intentional Gratitude for Your Spouse?

Take out the garbage before the stench starts to linger. Walk the dog before the sun sets. Scrape last night’s dinner off the plates that are crowding the sink. The list of things that need to be done is almost always endless. In our household, it takes two people to make sure that everything is as it should be. Unfortunately, those small acts of service often go unnoticed in the pressure of the daily grind.

Even more unfortunate, the little things that mean the most really start to take a backseat to the growing to-do list. The way my spouse makes a well-timed joke when I’m tempted to give into the chaos of raising children is always appreciated, but I rarely take the time to notice how much it means to me. The small, sweet gestures that are done on a daily basis slip by unnoticed until they suddenly disappear altogether.

In the hustle and bustle of daily life, it is often difficult to remember to be intentionally thankful for my spouse. My tendency is to take him for granted and assume he is just doing his part around the house. I really need to learn to slow down my daily life in order to create space to remember my gratitude for who my spouse is and what he contributes to my life in a thousand small ways each and every day.

Easy to do, but easy to overlook

Being intentionally thankful for your spouse (both what they do and who they are) can seem like a simple task at first glance. How hard could it be to acknowledge your appreciation for the help around the house or the fresh flowers on the dining room table? However, experienced couples know that these small niceties often fall by the wayside as the years pass by. It takes diligence and commitment to remember that your spouse needs to know how much they mean to you on a daily basis.

Set aside time in your busy schedule to acknowledge your gratitude for your spouse and their presence in your daily life. Whether you create a nighttime ritual or start writing short love notes for your spouse to find, saying a simple thank you can go a long way toward improving your relationship with your spouse.

Having a hard time kickstarting the habit of intentional thankfulness for your spouse? Start out by setting aside a long weekend for the Weekend to Remember marriage retreat. Here, you can learn important skills for better communication with your spouse. These practical tools may just give you the words that you need to let them know how much you appreciate them and value their relationship when the days feel extremely long.

(And one of the projects over the weekend is writing a love letter to your spouse!)

Looking for something you can do right now? Check out 50 Things to Say to Your Husband to Make Him Feel Great.