Most people enter marriage with high expectations. They dream of long walks through the neighborhood every night and long walks along the beach in the summer. Every day will be romantic and exciting.
But somewhere between “I do” and “happily ever after” daily life settles into a predictable routine. And by “predictable” I mean “mundane” – dare I even say “boring.” Before long, discontentment kicks in, and we’re living in what I call the “when’s” and “if only’s” of life.
“When the baby is sleeping through the night, life will be better.”
“When the kids are in school, I’ll have more time for myself.”
“If only we had a bigger house, we could have people over.”
“If only he got a promotion, we could afford to go on vacation.”
When and if … then life will be good.
But what if joy and contentment could be found in everyday life? It can be if we learn how to cherish the moments we’ve been given.
On tomorrow’s episode of “Focus on the Family,” Alexandra Kuykendall will share the results of a nine-month experiment she underwent to rekindle her love for what she calls “ordinary life.” From spouses making time to date one another to supporting each other’s dreams, couples can learn how to embrace everyday life together.
Alexandra picked nine areas of her life that she wanted to improve, then focused on a new one every 30 days for nine months.
Here’s how she described them:
- Bring It Down How can you create quiet in the day to pray and listen to God?
- First Things First Does your morning routine set a positive tone for the day?
- My Peeps When you’re with your family, are you spending quality time together, or are you simply in the same room?
- Be Kind to My Body You take care of your kids’ physical needs, but are you taking care of your own?
- Unleashing the Wild How can you approach your daily routines in a way that mixes up your routines and infuses your day with a fresh perspective?
- Pushing Through the Piles What can be done to bring order to parts of your home that are disorganized, whether that be laundry and dishes or the family budget?
- Love Is In the Details How has God wired you to be creative? Gardening? Writing? Painting? Cooking? Music?
- Three Times a Day Family meals don’t have to be gourmet feasts. But households run better when you have a plan, even if it’s sandwiches.
- I Am Made To Do Great Things If you pursue your passions just a little every day, you’ll have something enriching to look forward to on a daily basis.
Alexandra’s strategy helped her slowly regain control of valuable parts of her life and better appreciate the good they brought to her.
She’ll share her journey and encourage you and your spouse to think of similar ways you can enrich your own daily life and marriage. Tune in to our radio program “Learning to Relish Life with Your Spouse.” You can hear it on your local radio station, online, or on our free phone app.
You may also be interested in Alexandra Kuykendall’s book called “Loving My Actual Life: An Experiment in Relishing What’s Right in Front of Me” where she details her nine-month experiment to rekindle her love for “ordinary life.”
We also have a lot of other helpful resources in our online bookstore.
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