Monday, December 6, 2010

Better Deal

A long time ago, Dustin and I heard a quote about marriage that I never forgot (well....I forgot where we heard it, and I don’t remember the exact wording...but the concept has stuck with me): In order to have a happy marriage, each person must believe they got the “better deal”. Each person in the relationship should feel like the lucky one....leading to endless blissful years. I’m not sure this is the only key to a successful union, but I do like the idea. If you’re aware and grateful for what you have, it’s hard to build up resentment, or self-bias. (otherwise known as the “I do everything around here” grumble.)

The thing about Dustin and I though....is that I totally got the better deal. It’s not something I have to convince myself of- it’s pretty much a fact. Don’t get me wrong- I hope that he feels the same way about me....but even if he does, I’m still pretty sure that I’m the lucky one.

Reasons I totally got the better deal
Dustin....
  • Packs my lunch every day! And usually remembers the spoon for my yogurt!
  • Serves as our family “grounds crew”- raking, mowing, shoveling....
  • Makes root beer floats, because he knows they taste better when he makes them for me.
  • Invented custom Kraft mac & cheese- with sour cream instead of milk. (try it....you won’t go back).
  • Snuggles me whenever I ask. Even if he was already asleep.
  • Keeps track of all of our bills and investments, and (probably) doesn’t funnel it into a secret account without me knowing.
  • Dances with me...slow, fast, or funny....
  • Won’t let me drive when my car needs oil because he doesn’t want anything to happen to me (...or the car...but mostly me...I think).
  • Volunteers for errands, like grocery shopping, library book returning, etc. when I have to work late.
  • Accepts “I’m scared of the basement” as an excuse, and does our laundry (including separating and line drying my unmentionables.)
  • Humors me and my wild, excessive ideas. So so much.
  • Gets dressed in the dark (or by flashlight if necessary) to avoid waking me up in the morning.
  • Lets me put my cold feet on him when I don’t feel like getting up to get socks.
  • Buys me special surprises- like a replacement for my long lost water bottle, or a game that he knows he’ll be forced to play forever.
  • Texts me traffic or weather updates when he leaves the house first.
  • Buys tampons for me....even without me having to ask.
  • Has a signature dance move where he only moves his knees, that makes me pee my pants laughing....every time.
  • Tolerates my trash tv habit with (minimal) gripes.
  • Lets me have the last bite of just about any food we share.
  • Does 90% of the driving on road trips (including a NYC-South Carolina trip in which I lasted precisely one half hour before trading back.)
  • Almost always apologizes first.
  • Defrosts chicken because he knows I think it’s icky.
  • Serves as a fashion consultant when I need an outfit opinion...even if he thinks both pairs of boots look identical.
I’m sure there are a million more reasons...but if I go on anymore you all are going to get jealous (even more than you already are!) At his core, Dustin has a servant heart, and I’m beyond blessed to be a recipient of so much of his love and attention. Above all he teaches me how to love like Jesus does. And that is the best deal of all.

2 comments :

  1. This is so crazy because I JUST started a list exactly like this! Maybe something's in the air? Anyhow, ironically Mike and I saw a baby trying to walk this morning and talked about Dustin's knee dance! Ha! Oh, and come back from NYC.

    ReplyDelete
  2. This is unbelievable. Truly.

    What you don’t mention is how you see past every one of my flaws and look for the good in me. THAT is where I get the better half of the deal!
    Love you babe!
    Thank you.

    ReplyDelete