Last week I was at my daughter’s gymnastics practice when a pretty demanding migraine hit me. I didn’t want to snatch my daughter out of practice because it would hinder her goal of becoming the first professional princess to win a gold medal in gymnastics!
So, I called my husband and asked him to trade places with me so I could go home and nurse my headache. He came right after work, still in his ABU’s.
Just yesterday, I was at gymnastics practice again with “the Princess” and I noticed how many men were there. Not just men, but military fathers. Most of them, like my hubby, still had on their uniforms. One particular guy caught my eye when I decided to purposely look around the gym. He was having this deep conversation about dirty, smelly field rotations………..in his uniform, all while holding on to his daughter’s pink (with glitter too) duffle bag! I loved it!
That pink duffle bag made me realize how much I DON’T thank my husband enough for what he does at home. I express my pride and gratitude for what he does as a military Airman, the media and higher ups thank him for his sacrifices and everything he does for our country; but when was the last time I actually thanked him for the things he does at home?
I know sometimes we get caught up in life, at least I do. We do so much as military wives/girlfriends, especially those of us with children. When our husbands step up and help out with the family side of things, we are probably so exhausted that we tend to forget to say “thank you”.
Am I alone? When was the last time you thanked your husband, not for being a soldier, but for being a husband and a dad?
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4 Comments on Real Men Wear Pink…Something I Realized While At My Daughter’s Gymnastics Practice
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I’m a little torn on this. Thanking him for coming to practice so I could leave, you bet. Taking our daughter to practice and holding her pink bag, that’s part of the gig. As Shadia pointed out he doesn’t babysit the kids any more than I babysit them. Taking care of the chores around the house, part of being an adult. With that said we try showing mutual appreciation when it comes to running the household. A thank you can go along way but we both need them for all those mundane everyday task.
What a cute story… :) I can just picture all the Dad’s with their daughters wearing pink! Being a daddy’s girl at heart, I know how important father/daughter time is and a lot of little girls don’t have their fathers present in their lives. The idea of thanking our husbands everyday for the little things is really important. It lets them know that they are appreciated. My husband thanks me all the time, not because I’m doing anything above my responsibilities as a wife or mother but because he values everything I do. We really are lucky to have these Renaissance men! Why not show them some appreciation?! <3
My husband has always been appreciative of the things I do for him and for his soldiers. I am appreciative of the things he does for the children and for me. He thanks me for everything from sending him needed items when he’s away to knowing where his laid his keys. I thank him for everything from waking up early (when overseas on a different time schedule) to talk to me if I’m having a rough day to cleaning up the house or making dinner when he knows I don’t really feel like it! I don’t know if it’s just how I was raised or if it’s more about how I want my kids to grow up, but, I think it’s important to acknowledge and thank anyone who does something for you, even IF you did have to ask for it to be done first. For me, it’s not so much about the fact that he’s doing something that’s a part of his job or part of being a father or even an adult, it’s that he did something and now I don’t have to do it. It’s about the fact that he could have left it for me to do, but, he loves me, so he didn’t. Everyone needs to feel loved and appreciated, so if telling him thank you for simple, everyday things helps him feel that way, so be it! I know I love hearing him show his appreciation of the everyday things I do! It takes some of the boring, everyday, “chore” feeling out of the normal, mundane tasks of life when you know that someone has taken notice of the work you’ve done and appreciates your efforts, even if they are just going to get dirty, used or eaten again in five minutes! We are so focused on praising our children to build up their self esteem, why shouldn’t we do the same for our spouses, friends, and family? You’d thank a friend for cleaning up a mess that their child makes at your home, wouldn’t you? In my mind, that should be their job… but you would still thank them, right? Why wouldn’t you do the same for your husband? I know I am plenty guilty of lamenting about the things I wish my husband would do, was home to do, or would have done before he left. I’m just as guilty as the next person. But, I also know that I’m lucky enough and loved enough for him to do the things that he does do, already! I know he could have left much, if not all of it, for me to deal with later, but, he doesn’t! For that I am thankful and I have no issues telling him or showing him just how much those “little things” really do mean to me!
I think some of these ladies are missing the point here. It wouldn’t hurt to acknowledge the little things our spouses do. I’m thankful for my husband and EVERYTHING he does as my best friend, husband, father to our children and provider. Everyone likes to hear that they’re appreciated sometimes, so thank you Marisha for sharing this and reminding me to just say thank you a little more!