Day 6: January 19

Snowed in! And…I spent the whole day in sweats. We were getting ready for Liesl’s party…so…you know how the house gets when you’re getting ready for something? There was frosting everywhere, I looked like something the possum dragged in, which, I probably need to make dressing in real pants and putting some makeup on more of a priority. If I’m not going someplace, I won’t put makeup on just for Scott. This is not ok. Or at least not ok all the time. I’ve seen some pictures the kids have taken of me on those days and again, not pretty.  HOWEVER, Liesl’s cake looked beautiful!

Appearance: D
Children: C
Attitude: C
Clutter: A+ The house looked great for the big party and overnight guests. So I guess I was sort of forced into having it be perfect, so…win?

Day 7: January 20

This was Liesl’s birthday brunch. I thought the table was so pretty, I was about ready to cry! I’m silly. We did a Nutcracker ballet theme, and I missed my grandma so much 😦

Appearance: A

Clutter: A

Kiddos: A

Attitude: A puh-lusssss!!  I didn’t even lose it when Scott said he’d be late to the party since he got hung up at church in TWO meetings. I am woman, hear me purr! And the party was so fun. The kids had a great time.

January 21

Appearance: C
Children: A
Attitude: B No negative comments to Scott about him, but I know I did some complaining today 😦 Especially after the Chiefs lost!!!! *sob*
Clutter: D- You know how it looks after you’ve had a get-together? The house had blown up, crumbs on the floor, and I just had a big ol’ glass of wine on Sunday There is still a pile of boxes and gift bags next to the kitchen table.

Which brings me to the end of the 7 day experiment. I would say that the whole house was positively affected by my change in attitude and checking my words. I really became so much more aware of the negative things I was saying, even about myself. And you know how much we women like to use our words 🙂 It is so important for wives to show their husbands respect, and I don’t think I realize how disrespectful I can be to him sometimes. Rolling my eyes (inwardly or physically), immediately dismissing his heartfelt, thoughtful suggestions, not being willing to help him out with something, or doing it, but begrudgingly. All of this is not ok to do to someone who works so hard and sacrifices so much for his family. And of course, he is not perfect either. But I think women forget how much power we have over our home environment. And the funny thing I discovered was that: the more I tried to make him happy and put him at ease, the more joyful I felt myself.

I think Scott noticed this new attitude too. He was doing things for me without my even saying anything! As I previously posted, the air between us seemed different. It seemed lighter, more open, and just calmer in general. There was no momentous, “who are you and what have you done with my wife??” but I could tell he was sitting up and paying a little more attention. He was more cuddly on the couch at night, and we just seemed to enjoy being around each other more. It was like a shadow of our dating selves or something?

I hope my little experiment encourages you to try something of this sort on your hubby too. Meanwhile, do you have any suggestions on keeping the clutter at bay? This was the thing I struggled with the most!