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Whilst perusing Mama Mia yesterday, I landed upon one of the most simple (yet powerful!) and magnificent pearls of relationship wisdom that I have ever encountered! It was a comment from reader Chantelle of Fat Mum Slim, in response to an article about couples moving in together, and her sage words were:
'' A great piece of advice that I once read was to treat your husband/wife/girlfriend/boyfriend/life partner like they're the most important guest in your house. I love that, and I do that. 'Babe, would you like a drink?' 'Can I get something for you?' etc etc goes a looong way, and it goes both ways.
I'm completely still in love with my husband 8 years on, and so is he.''
Chantelle, I HEAR you. And also? I salute you! How often do we treat our partners as though they're one of the most precious jewels on Earth, despite the fact that we LOVE them, and their unwavering support and dedication to us makes them utterly deserving of our devotion? Okay sure, we're not ALWAYS going to be capable of providing an endless supply of gratitude (personally, I hear that upon being woken from a deep slumber in the mornings, I am the human equivalent of a grizzly bear: growly, swipe-y and probably not safe to be approached without some kind of protective equipment!), but if we aspired to improve at least 1/3 of our daily interactions with our beloveds, would our relationships blossom into something even MORE incredible?
Scribble notes about your wild affection for your loved one and pack them amongst their lunch. Bake them their favourite sweet treats, for no other reason than KNOWING that it will bring them overwhelming glee. Pick flowers. Hide random, inanimate objects around the house. (My boyfriend and I have forever taken turns at placing a small plastic dinosaur in unexpected locations for eachother to find at least weekly, purely to inspire giggling! It has the most ridiculous expression ever and has been known to appear in cereal boxes, the shower, slipped inside the ring-pull feature of a tin can and underneath pillows.) Announce that you've researched an activity that they've always wanted to try and complete it with them. Listen to their wishes.
But most importantly? LOVE them. Because they love us, and for that, they're worthy of the most marvellous things that the world has to offer.

♥
xoxo
(Images thanks to Lovely Lolita.)
What a great idea.
27 Nov 2009, Ricky
This is amazing advice!! Ugh it makes me mad at myself because my boyfriend treats me like royalty while I tend to be a big grump a lot of the time :< Will definitely keep this in mind though, it is necessary!
26 Nov 2009, Luana, http://lemonlu.com
Wow, interesting comments left, right and centre, thank-you everyone!
Miss Sofia - Oh shite, that IS a bit of a complicated situation! My only advice is that if you're not sure it's applicable to your current situation, keep it in the back of your mind for future endeavours! :)
Sarah Hannah - It DEFINITELY has to be a two-way street.
Joanne Faith - Awww, that's adorable! Hooray!
Katie - You're welcome! I totally understand. I'm currently in the final stages of my college course, which basically equates to daily exams and assignments which are due.. hello, stress! I haven't been the best girlfriend that I can be lately because of it all (my focus has been geared entirely towards my studies!), so this really struck a chord with me.
25 Nov 2009, x Corrine/Frock & Roll x, www.frockandrollonline.com
Aww lovely! This is perfect timing because my boy has been irritating me so much lately.. probably it's just me being irritated by other things but taking it out on him :( thanks for the tips <3
25 Nov 2009, Katie, http://musicamor.com/vinny/fuckhammer/blog/
I have to admit, my boyfriend and I do treat each other like that most of the time! We're ridiculously smoochy n' shit. It's so gross!
24 Nov 2009, Joanne Faith, http://joannefaith.com
true!
unless you have a complicated, moody boyfriend that takes it the wrong way and feels guilty that you treat him so well since he doesnt treat you as well in return. cue arguments.
24 Nov 2009, sarah hannah, deathwearsdiamondjewellery.wordpress.com
That really is a magnificent piece of advice. Unfortunately it doesn't work that well for me, since I'm in a complicated sort of friends-with-benefits on-and-off relationship with my high school boyfriend, and if I show him too much love he thinks I'm being clingy. Oh, well.
24 Nov 2009, Miss Sofia, http://www.wineintheafternoon.com
Sally - SAME! I think my boyfriend is pretty excellent at this, but me? There's a definitely a little room for improvement.
Alex - Haha, thanks Alex! I don't even know how it started, but we've been doing it for years now!
24 Nov 2009, x Corrine/Frock & Roll x, www.frockandrollonline.com
Aww, the dinosaur thing is so cute, Corrine!
24 Nov 2009, Alex, http://stockingsneededmending.blogspot.com
Ya know, my hubby does this ... but I don't! I need to take a page out of HIS book.
24 Nov 2009, Sally, http://www.alreadypretty.com/