Jan 31

Written by: Julie Arduini
1/31/2010 11:00 PM 

 

 

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Yay, it's Marriage Monday!  Today's subject is How to Celebrate February 14 Every Day of the Year

 

 

I must confess, this picture isn't me or my husband.  I know, you must be shocked, these two look so...animated.

They however project the theme I want to share with you: We celebrate February 14 Every Day of the Year by...

 

Sitting on the couch.

 

It's true, and it's that simple.  We are a busy family and honestly, the last two years caught up to us.  We reached the point we didn't know what the other person was doing and our communication nearly stalled.   Both of us have improving to do and we both embraced the fact that the changes don't need to be rocket science.  They just take time and commitment.

Most of our married years I disliked our living room set up because he has a recliner that doesn't face where I sit, on the couch.  When I tried to talk to him that chair felt like a moat to me, and that my husband was near unapproachable.  He didn't mean to be, it was simply logisitics.

Then I got my own moat called my laptop.  He tried to communicate with me but I was deep in a writing assignment or ministry issue.  We still have things to do but each night we've made a choice to spend time together on the couch.

Sometimes we sit very close and talk (or not), watch a movie, or in my case, fall asleep on him while he watches the movie.  Sometimes we don't sit too close, but we face each other and just chat.  Then there are the times we are on the same piece of furniture but have our laptops.  We still talk but he might have a demo due for work and I have Love Dare moderation to check in on.  We try to make those times rare, but we're trying to make the couch thing a habit. 

I think as society we get caught up in the idea we have to do something expensive and fancy.  My favorite moments have been the simple and free ones.  Spending time each night on the couch has enhanced our marriage big time.  Just do it!  I highly recommend it!

Speaking of highly recommend, I recommend the following online marriage resources for your enjoyment:

Exemplify Online.  I blog once a month with the marriage channel.  Each writer at Exemplify is wonderful, so please visit them daily or subscribe.  On February 9 my post on Valentine's Day will publish.  I'd love you to check it out!

Adding Zest to Our Nest--Patty and Heidi have taken the bedroom aspect of Christian marriage and made it the central theme of this blog.  There is no boundaries on this site and it's such a relief to know finally these topics are available in a Biblical fashion to encourage and inform.

The Love Dare at Christian Women Take Root: I moderate this group and love it because on my own I had trouble with the Love Dare.  Knowing there are other ladies taking the dare too, it helps.  We each go on our own pace as God directs and each dare day has a discussion on the group page for you to follow or participate in.  We're working on a chat schedule, more info to come.  This group is ongoing so it's always the perfect time to join.  If getting the book is on your to do list and you haven't been able to get it, there is a free PDF of the book available on the group page.  Join us!

 

photo by photobucket