When we first got married 6 ½ years ago, there were two pieces of advice I really tried to take to heart: choose your battles, and don’t sweat the small stuff. Every day there were little things that bugged me, but I chose to bite my lip, knowing I did stuff that annoyed him too. Then came kids. Oh, boy! Babies are naturally disposed to spit up, drool, and create other natural messes that require a change of outfits at least once a day, and toddlers come behind you like a tornado, making messes as quickly as you clean them up. Now the little things your spouse does, that didn’t seem to matter before, suddenly become huge infractions because it’s JUST MORE WORK! Ack!
Do I really need to remind him to turn the light off in the back room, to close the bag of cookies so they don’t go stale, to replace the toilet paper roll when it’s empty, to pick up potentially dangerous objects (like the nail clippers our 2-year-old found on the floor)? Honestly, no. He’s not a helpless infant, after all, though I may try to treat him like one. Sometimes I get so imbedded into that “motherhood” role I forget to make the switch when he comes in the door. Sure, he forgets stuff, but so does every other adult on the planet, and would I appreciate it if he reminded me of every little slip up of my own? I know he hates it when I spend too much time on the computer, when I leave his clothes in the dryer so they end up wrinkled, when I let dishes pile up in the sink or papers on the desk. But he doesn’t remind me of my faults every time I do it. Can’t I extend him the same courtesy? Lord, I’m trying!
This picture of Dave made me laugh!!! I do love it when he wears his stretchy pants!!!
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