Angry Angry Hippo!!

Have you ever had someone tell you

"My life is so much harder than yours. Yours is so easy you have a great family, great job, great home...you have everything!"

I must admit I used to have the "i want to sock you in the knee cap" urge when people would tell me that.

Then I started reading this book "The proper care and feeding of husbands." (compliments of Alexis L). No folks, I am not even close to getting married. (You can go ahead and laugh at me now). But after growing up in the home that I did, I kind of have a complex about marriage. I'm afraid I'll end up with a crazy man or that he'll cheat on me or abuse me or my kids! I know thats so bad to worry about, but I do. I thought reading this book would maybe warm me up to marriage and all that it entails (since I've been resisting considering it for the past 3 years haha), and wow it has seriously changed my life. All this time I thought the book would just warm me up to marriage, but it has encouraged me to change work on myself and develop traits and abilities that will help me not only in my marriage someday... (whether in this life, or the next..ok? haha), but in life RIGHT NOW. As Alexis has mentioned, she is so mean to women! haha throughout the entire book she just rails on women and all the things they do wrong in marriage. While I disagree with her approach to teaching how to be a good wife, I have found so many incredibly valuable tips from reading the book, and its really opened my eyes to understanding how men (and even just people in general) think and work.

One thing she talks about is kind of the art of reverse psychology.

When someone (if your married this could be your husband) comes up to you and rants about how hard their day was and how lucky you were to be at your "easy" job (whatever your daily tasks/jobs entail), you automatically feel like this hippo:

Before you can say hippopotamus, you are now feeling defensive, misunderstood, and hurt. This kind of talk does not help anyone. Now the person who said it, is either getting chewed out by you, or feeling really bad for taking no thought as to the fact that YOUR day may have also had its blunders and difficulties.

Instead of behaving like that, try this:

"Hey! How are you doing today (friend, babe, whoever that special someone is :))? I missed you so much I bet you had such a busy day! I don't know how you do it with all that you have going on each day (with school, work, kids, your crazy aunt Jemyma)! We should go relax and unwind from the busy day!" (I cheesed it up, but you get the drift)

How did that make you feel?

I felt good. haha

Even if you can guarantee your day has to have been harder, is the competition really doing you any good?

I am DEFINITELY no expert at relationships (thus why I enjoy this book and learning how I can better myself). I do, on the other hand, believe this to be true. As soon as we show that we care about others and recognize that each person has their own life circumstances and difficulties, they automatically want to reciprocate sympathy, love, affection, understanding, etc. etc. etc.....etc.

Who doesn't want that? :)

Welp, thats all folks! (not sure where this Texas accent came from..)

Make it a great weekend!! :)