I have always believed that coming home to a clean house and a cooked meal is a huge blessing to our husbands. I know some people may think that sounds weird but after being at work, and dealing with all the pressures of the outside world, our homes should be a haven to our husbands. I read an article years ago on the subject and it totally changed my perspective on “preparing for my husband to return home each day”.
If a husband comes home to a messy house, a wife still in pajamas and looking disheveled, dishes everywhere, toys scattered all over, kids fighting and screaming, not a clue about what’s for dinner etc.—that doesn’t cultivate a feeling of peace and contentment. That’s just chaos !
The lady said there was so much power in actual preparation!! You must be intentional!! I took her words to heart. I wanted to be that kind of wife. I wanted to bless my husband.
So my husband got home around 4:00 pm at that time, so I began to “prepare” for his arrival-
I began to meal plan weekly and plan our dinners ( making sure I bought all the ingredients on my weekly grocery trips so I didn't have any last minute missing ingredients that would put me behind) - I wrote out all the dinner meals by days of the week so I knew in advance if I need to lay something out to thaw in the morning or if needed to do prep work early in the day to make that meal so that helped tremendously on the “what’s for dinner” stress-
I started to plan about an half hour to an hour before his arrival to make a point of getting presentable —getting out of my PJs if I hadn't made it that far in my day yet (in my defense, I had an incredibly fussy baby and a toddler at that time lol 😂 ) or if I was already dressed by some miracle, I would actually fix my hair and freshen up- like the lady who wrote the article said ( I wish I could remember who it was so I could properly link the source) - I was my husband’s bride and I needed to put an effort into being presentable and looking nice for him.
You don’t have to dress up super fancy or put on a show but just by taking a few minutes to put on clean clothes (or is that even possible for moms of little ones?? Lol 😂) and to brush/fix your hair, you are showing your husband that it is still worth the effort to you to look nice/presentable for him. (I wouldn’t have been caught dead when we were courting looking like I did at that point. I wanted to look my best for him before we got married. I didn’t want him to see me disheveled and a mess. So why did I let myself go after God sent me the man of my dreams?? I realized I should show him how much I still value his opinion of me and try to make a little effort to take care of myself.
After getting ready, she recommended that I try to tidy up the main living space of the home (for us, it was the living room and kitchen) —picking up toys, clutter, stuff that didn’t belong in those rooms, etc... not deep cleaning, dusting or vacuuming unless absolutely necessary- just simple tidying and picking up clutter- surprisingly this small step makes a tremendous impact on the overall feeling of your home (especially with small kids: I read a tip to keep a “containment” basket/bin in the living room or main room of the house- when doing this quick 5 minute “tidy up”, just put all the toys and clutter in it for a quick “tidy up” to make your space easier to maintain.
As my kids got to be toddlers (and older now), I included them in our quick “5 minute clean” to get ready for Daddy to come home— it has become so second nature to them that they do it now on their own without my bidding each day.
Since the kids were very little, I would get them excited to see Daddy when he came home... they would hear or see his vehicle coming down the road and start squealing “Daddy’s home!! Daddy’s home!! and rush to hug and greet him enthusiastically!! (I firmly believe in building up “Daddy” to kids- I try to never say a cross word to/ or about their dad in front of them - they will learn from the examples they see!!) I would then greet my husband at the door with a smile, hug and kiss.
Now after I followed the advice of a wise lady and applied it to my own life/home, my husband could walk in our home and not be bombarded with complete and utter chaos the minute he stepped inside the door. So, with just a little bit of intention and preparation on my part, our home’s initial appearance and atmosphere completely changed...( no, I wasn’t perfect- my toilets may have still needed scrubbed and my laundry was overflowing at that point and I still had much to learn but that little bit of effort went a long way...)
DISCLAMER:
I am realistic enough to know that sometimes it’s not possible to keep up with everything ...Life happens and kids get sick and stuff comes up . That’s ok- give yourself some grace. No one is perfect and sometimes things are beyond your control. But don’t just quit and give up!! Just keep trying!! It is so worth the effort to bless your husband in this way!! By blessing your husband and serving him, you are actually fulfilling one of God’s highest callings!! He created you expressly for the purpose of being your husband’s helpmeet!
So as a challenge, I encourage you to try it with a cheerful heart ( * it doesn’t work if you do it grudgingly and with a bad spirit) and see if it doesn’t drastically improve your home and even your mood!!
I know your husband will appreciate the effort you put into “blessing him”...
-Tiphanie
