Is your significant relationship strong (enough)?

And… enjoy Tracy’s guest blog post as well.

Surprises are nice to have, that’s for sure. Who doesn’t like to be surprised at work with a Barbershop Quartet to sing your favorite song on your birthday? Or the African Drumming party where all my friends and family got to learn to play the Djembe in a giant drum circle? Diamond earrings? Well, I suspect that many of us love these types of surprises and over the years, my husband has been the king of amazing me.

But in between the quartet and the earrings are every day little things that take my breath away. Take the coffee he leaves cooling on the counter so it’s the perfect temperature when I wake up or the phone call he made yesterday to look after one of those annoying household “to do’s” that I was putting off forever. These examples are the gestures that can get missed, or perhaps are the gestures which used to bring a smile to the corner of your mouth and force you to fill your lungs with air because you were so lost in the feeling of being loved you forgot to breathe.

I wouldn’t be surprised if there are gestures that your lover is making regularly that you might be missing – if you were to take a moment to consider what were the Little Things that happened today that are ways of your lover expressing love? Did you pick up that coffee and gulp it down only feeling frustrated at the kids fighting in the bathroom? Or did you grab the cup, bring it to your lips and take a moment to be grateful for the husband that loves you so much that you were the first things that he thought of when he got up. Catch yourself being loved. It feels good doesn’t it?

Now what have you done to make your loved one’s day better? Have you packed a lunch? Took the time to find the hat that he had been looking for? Maybe you sent him a text message letting him know you were thinking of him.

The funny thing about the little things is that they grow. Those little things usually end up being the big things that built your love, that kept you feeling connected because life is built through Exponential Little Bits. A little water every day to grow a garden, a little exercise every day to keep your body fit, a little expression of love every day to keep that love strong.

The big things are sure nice, don’t get me wrong, but my love keeps growing with the little things in between. Try it, this week, every day do one little thing to express your love. ELBs every day.

***

Zerbert, if you are wondering about the photo above is the Thibodeau’s family word for the value in not taking things too seriously and having fun.

We also talked about The Compassion Project on the show, you can find out more about it here…

The Compassion Project

Stephanie Staples, CSP* is the author of When Enlightening Strikes – Creating a Mindset for Uncommon Success and an internationally acclaimed motivational speaker. She empowers audiences & clients across North America to bring their ‘A’ game to work and to life. Stephanie has a special interest in working with and empowering nurses and healthcare providers. She happily calls Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada home. You can get loads of complimentary resources to help with issues such as work/life balance, wellness, stress management and happiness in general, as well as find out more information about her coaching and speaking services at http://www.YourLifeUnlimited.ca.

* Certified Speaking Professional (CSP), conferred by the National Speakers Association is the speaking profession’s international measure of professional platform proficiency. Less than 10 percent of speakers have earned this credential and are recognized as some of the best in their fields. Stephanie was one of only five professional speakers in Canada (and the only woman) to attain this designation in 2013.

The post Is your significant relationship strong (enough)? first appeared on Your Life Unlimited.

Contributed by Stephanie Staples at Your Life Unlimited

by Stephanie Staples

Is your significant relationship strong (enough)?

Pro Tips