Home Sanctuary: All the Fun

Today's Small Thing is really simple, but might not be easy to pull off in one day. You'll get through Sunday to work on this one.

It's this: Have fun with your man. BE fun with him.

See, somewhere in the middle of organizing children and budgets and cleaning and committees, we find ourselves being more like our husband's mother than his cute 'n sexy wife.

I can already hear some of you grumbling. I've gained weight! We just lost a job! My kids are sick! Yes, those are all excellent reasons to be frumpy. To be glum. To snap at your man.

And if I thought being the resident grump would help your situation, I'd encourage you to continue on.

But let me just share something I've learned along the way, and I'll bet a hundred dollars that you know this to be true too: Men are just like boys. They want to have fun! And they secretly want their wives to be fun!

Ah, NOW with the protests. Girls, you've got to stop this!

If you only knew what my husband thinks is "fun!" Yeah, I've got a good idea.

If you only knew that my man would throw all our money away on a boat! Well, you don't have to be foolish with your fun.

If you only knew the stress we are under! Been there, done that.

He's been such a knucklehead, I'm really mad at him. And your point is.....?

So let's quantify "fun," and see if it will give you some hope:

Your husband's FAVORITE fun is only going to take about 14 minutes, so what's the big deal? I mean, come on.

And it wouldn't kill you to sit and watch an action movie or a football game.

You could tease him like you used to, just for fun.

You could give him a break on his chore list and let him do something he'd enjoy doing instead.

You could flirt with him on the phone.

You could say sweet and silly things to him.

Play. Wink. Smile. Nudge. Be goofy. Be attractive. Lordy, put some makeup on!

Say, aren't we just encouraging manly irresponsibility? Perhaps.

But in the big scheme of things, a man who feels loved and has a little fun with his wife, is far more likely to shoulder his responsibilities gladly, than one who is beaten down and discouraged by her.

And all joking aside, I DO realize that this Small Thing may seem like a Huge Impossible Thing for some of you. I will ask you all to pray for each other, that we can simply lighten up in our marriages. That we will find a way to have fun, BE fun together and enjoy each other. If it's been a long, dry while since you've had any fun with your man, then just take a small step today. Let bitterness go, and let fun pave the way to forgiveness.

POINTS: 50 for being a fun girl with your guy