Weekend Kindness
Reaching Others Through Kindness

So, here’s another something that you can do if you’re artistically gifted– but even if you’re not, the time that you spend together will make it special:

Design your personal crest combining symbols that are meaningful to both of you.

So, what kinds of things can you use?  Simply write a list of the things that are most important to the two of you and either find pictures of them or draw pictures of them.  It can be as fancy as you like.

You could make it in such a way that it could be the logo for your family, something that you put on stationery or find some other use for it.  Or you could simply scrapbook it and pictures of you creating it as a memory of the activity.

Whatever you choose, make sure it’s a time to enjoy one another and to celebrate those things that you enjoy!

No, don’t kidnap your spouse– although I’m sure it would be a welcome relief from work or from watching the kids!  I’m talking about kidnapping the car!

Kidnap the car for a thorough washing, waxing and vacuuming.

Ok, so maybe doing all three will be a lot of work.  Perhaps you’d just like to take it down to the local car wash and have them do it.  The point is, it will make more of a difference to that special someone than you think.

Right now, our van is pretty messy, but it’s nothing compared to the car that my dad lets me borrow every day at lunch (we car pool).  I had to clean off the caked dirt the other day in order to make out what it said on the speedometer!  So, perhaps I should do this to his car.

Surely you know of a car near you that could use some TLC (Tender Loving Cleaning– I mean, Care) and in the process you can show kindness and love to someone?

Today’s assignment will take a little planning and some of us are going to be a little better and making this prettier than others:

Make a coupon book and include coupons for a back rub, a compromise when about to lose an argument, a listening ear when needed, and doing the dishes when the other cooks.

I have a funny story here– this past weekend our church had a going away carry-in meal for a family that’s relocating.  I was standing in line waiting to get food for my kids, when I just reached out in front of me to one of the male senior saints in the church and started to give him a back massage.  After asking how much I charged (he could never afford it!) he said that he hoped my wife got the same benefit he was getting.

Do we take the time to indulge our partners in massages, or playing with hair, or doing something out of the ordinary?  Then this is just the thing to help break out of the routine!

Anyone want to post something unique you’re putting in your coupon book?  I bet Revka will have something in there involving Transformers. :)

Here’s an assignment for all of you out there that bake:

Bake a giant cookie and write “I love you” with heart shaped redhots or frosting.

And here’s a Giant Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe to do just that:

1/2 c. white sugar
1/3 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
6 oz. pkg. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 c. chopped nuts, optional

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Mix sugars, butter, and vanilla. Beat in egg. Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix in chocolate chips and nuts. Grease pizza pan and spread dough in the pan. Bake until light brown, 12 to 14 minutes. Cool and cut. You can decorate if you wish. These are great for birthday parties, Father’s Day, etc.

Karl and I are working on our tenth year of marriage, but we’ve known one another for fifteen years. We still love to spend time together alone, but sometimes it’s hard to find something different to talk about. There are the usual topics like the kids, school, and work, but those are a far cry from the topics discussed over our romantic dinners together 1999BK (Before Kids).

After building a home and family together, there just isn’t much left to our imaginations when it comes to knowing one another. There are no secrets, no real mysteries anymore. We can finish one another’s sentences and know what the other is thinking just by a look. We have enough history and “inside” lingo between us that we can carry on entire conversations with one another that no one else is able to comprehend. While this is very sweet in some respects, it doesn’t help when we don’t already have something to talk about.

Last weekend, my sweet man treated me to dinner at a very nice, family-owned Italian restaurant. As we sat opposite one another, we made small talk about the furnishings and the menu. After we placed our drink orders with the server, we stared at one another for a few moments before Karl asked, “What do you want to talk about?”

“All I know for certain is that I don’t want to talk about our children,” I replied.

After all, we had asked the in-laws to take the kids for a few hours so that we could have some time together without them. Why would I want to spend my first peaceful dinner of the week talking about them?

Karl asked my thoughts on a couple of co-worker related issues and then said, “OK. I have an idea for our dinner conversation…We can’t possibly know everything there is to know about one another, so let’s take turns sharing things that we think the other doesn’t already know. You go first.”

I had to think for a few seconds, but by the time we ordered our meal, I had thought of at least two things to share. We took turns sharing “new” details of our lives. It was so much fun we continued throughout our evening together.

Though I’ve known him for half of my life now, there are so many things I have yet to learn about this wonderful man I married. I thought I knew everything about him, but I was reminded that he has a history, dreams and desires, and hopes that I have yet to discover. Not only did I learn some things, he listened and discovered some new details about me. It is such a blessing to have a spouse who is still interested in getting to know me.

Being married to the same person for the rest of my life will be far from boring!

Spend some time this week getting to know your spouse a little better. You may be reminded of how much you really enjoy being together and how much you actually like one other. You’ll definitely be surprised by how much you have yet to discover.

Here’s a project for you to do this weekend.  No, it’s nothing like cleaning out someone’s car, cleaning out the toilet, or even changing a dirty diaper.

This weekend, try declaring your love to your spouse.  But don’t just say “I love you– pass the chips.”  No, go the extra mile:

Pledge your love for a lifetime. Write it on calligraphy or design it on a desktop computer and print it out on parchment paper and have it framed.

Wow.  What a statement that would make to both your family, friends and those that would come into your home.

You can both sign it, you could use it as a way to celebrate an anniversary, or you can do it this weekend as a testament to your commitment to each other.

Come one come all and add your submissions to the Standing in the Gap Carnival to be hosted here at Weekend Kindness on July 20, 2007.

That’s right, I’m hosting the Standing in the Gap carnival as a way to be kind and show kindness. Do you have someone that’s running a carnival and they need someone to host? Perhaps someone you know is running a carnival and they need submissions.

Carnivals are great ways to read posts from sources you don’t normally frequent on a topic of interest. It’s also a great time to get your posts seen by others.

So, get some submissions going, and submit them to the Standing in the Gap Carnival!