So we've finally reached a milestone in our marriage! We celebrated 10 years of our blessed union on August 12, 2016! We even took our 1st vacation ALONE since we've had children, and it was absolutely AMAZING! But in our 10 years of being married, I'd like to share the top 10 things I've learned through the course of our 10 year marriage. Lowell is gonna share "his" top 10 things he's learned as well. For now, heres mine:
1. Take me time- Being a FT wife, mom, and employee can be stressful. I know that I need time to decompress and relax so I'll be pleasant for my family, and not a nagging grumpy mom. I make a conscious effort to go the nail spa regularly and have girl time.
2. Listen- I have the gift of gab. But like I tell Peyton, sometimes I've gotta close my mouth and open my ears, to listen to Lowell.
3. Forgive fast- Harboring unforgivness just leads to constant conflict and miscommunication. Jesus is a perfect example of forgiving. I mean if He didn't forgive me/us for my/our sins, we'd be some lost souls!
4. Say sorry- As stubborn as I am, I'm not always right. And sometimes, Lowell needs to hear me say that.
5. Respect- This is probably the most important things I've learned while being married, because all of these revolve around this. And respecting Lowell doesn't mean that I don't have a voice. It simply means that I need to treat Lowell as the head of our household, because that's his God given role. I mean come on, I wouldn't disrespect my boss at work. Likewise, he's the Manager, I'm Assistant Manager (and the Admin, Secretary, Marketing Director, Janitor, Chef, etc, lol) of the Ostlund household. Ultimately, God is the CEO/CFO/President, we work for Him.
6. Enjoy making love and cuddling- This right here was the one thing that sealed the deal when we got married. It's Gods gift to us, to enjoy one another and ONLY one another in this intamate/sacred way, so we need to make the most of it, and enjoy it to the fullest. Even after a long day of work, cooking, homework, giving baths, etc. No headache excuses, lol! Take some Tylenol and keep it moving!
7. Support him and his dreams- There's enough stress that Lowell has to deal with outside of this house. I need to be his #1 cheerleader, and encourage him when he's discouraged and tired with life's headaches, and remind him of not only who he is in Christ, but remind him of the amazing man/husband he is to me, and the great father he is to Max and Peyton.
8. Speak his love language- As mentioned in a previous blog I posted on February 20, 2016 titled "Discovering The 5 Love" Languages," through the help of the book, I learned the importance of speaking each others love language. He needs to be able to receive live from according to how God designed his mind tt receive it. That's done by word of encouragement and physical touch which are his love languages. He needs to be able to receive love according to how God designed his mind to receive it, and it's my job to speak it!
9. Work together as a team, especially when parenting- For obvious reasons, I can't express the importance of this. Let's just say, it is so helpful to have a partner to help with the day to day routine and activities, that can get EXTREMELY stressful and time consuming! Teamwork is the KEY!
10. Date each other- This is some of the best advice we received during marriage counseling. Going on a date, whether it's the movies, a walk, an amusement park, or dinner, allowed us to be able to connect like we did when we were young, and boyfriend and girlfeind. It keeps not only our relationship lively, but it continues to grow our friendship, and helps us stay young.
Most importantly, praying and reading the word together and individually is vital for the success of our marriage. It's our light, strength, hope, encouragement, and the glue to everything, because without it, we'd truly be lost! It's because of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ that we have what we have, and for that, I am truly forever grateful!!! I'm far from perfect, but I'm a constant work in progress.
