❤ 40 Things My Husband Does Right

• Fixes Stuff
• Outside Stuff
• Household Stuff
• Health Stuff
• Family Stuff
• Remembers Stuff
• Other Stuff
• Financial Stuff
• Stuff He Doesn't Do
 

Here's my husband at the beach in 2009. In real life, he has a nice smile and I love it when he laughs.
But...when I put the camera in front of him something happens and the pictures look, well, goofy. They don't portray him the way I see him.
Here's the best ( and most recent ) one I could find.


Let's get started with the list of things my husband does right!

Outside Stuff

1. Mows the lawn.


2. Picks up dog poop and puts it in the corner of the yard.


3. Picks up possums the dogs kills, puts them in the gutter, calls the city dead animal pick up to come get it .


4. Trims the bushes.


5. Trims tree branches.


6. Chops up the Christmas tree and puts the branches out by the curb for pick up.

Fixes Stuff

1. Tests old batteries and ranks them. A battery with a "3" has just a little bit of juice left whereas a battery with an "8" has more power.


2. Fixed the coffee pot when the plug stopped working.


3. Put new controls for the stove burners.


4. Fixes my toilet when it leaks.


5. Fixes the leaky kitchen sink and garbage disposal.


6. Replaced the garbage disposal once he determined it was beyond repair.


7. Fixes my car's flat tires and replaces dead batteries.


8. Worked diligently to fix the clothes dryer. He has fixed it many times over the years until it was beyond repair and we bought a new one.


9. Fixes my TV when the reception goes out. It usually has something to do the with cable connection.


10. Replaces light bulbs.

Household Stuff

1. Kills bugs I find in my bathtub (or anywhere else I find them).


2. Takes out the trash.


3. Brings the trash and recycling bins to the curb every week.


4. Gets us some firewood and stacks it on the wood pile outside.


5. Goes out into the cold and carries the firewood from the wood pile to the house.


6. Lights fires in the fireplace and tends them.


7. Does his own laundry.


8. Cleans out the lint trap in the clothes dryer after he dries his clothes.


9. Cleans his own bathroom.


10. Shops for his own groceries.


11. Cooks his own meals.


12. Makes coffee. It's not that he always makes the coffee, it's that when he wants coffee, he'll make it.


13. Cleans up after his meals.


14. Rents the Rug Doctor machine and steam cleans the carpets. I help by holding the electrical cord out of the way.


15. Calls the cable company when the TV and/or internet goes out. He knows the number by heart.


16. Called the bug guy when we thought we had termites. We did. They're gone now.


17. Called roofing contractors when we needed an estimate to repair the roof. Talked to the roofer and negotiated the contract. Paid the bill.


18. Called a fence company and got bids to have a wood fence built around our backyard. Negotiated the contract. Paid the bill.


19. Brings the mail in from the mailbox at the curb.

I know men get a bad wrap for not remembering events like women do, but my guy remembers the three important ones: my birthday, our anniversary, and Valentine's Day. He doesn't need any prompting or reminding from me and that's kind of nice. The thing I did to help him remember our anniversary was this: the wedding gift I gave him was a clock with our wedding date etched into it.

Remembers Stuff

1. Remembers my birthday by giving me a card and taking me out to dinner.


2. Remembers our anniversary with a card, flowers, and dinner.


3. Remembers valentines day with a card, flowers, candy, and dinner.

Health Stuff

1. Eats right - reasonable portions and not too much junk food.


2. Carefully monitors his sugar levels (he has Type 2 diabetes) and takes his insulin without any reminders from me.


3. Likes to exercise (his favorite is basketball).


4. Makes his own appointments to see the doctor.


5. Goes to his doctors by himself and listens to what the doctor has to say.

Other Stuff

1. Packs the car when we go on vacation.


2. Makes ice (fills the ice cube trays with water).


3. Puts up Christmas lights outside.


4. Puts up the Christmas tree. Really, we wouldn't even have a Christmas tree if it weren't for him.


5. Plays with the dog.


6. Tolerates my annoying habits.


7. Gets us good free stuff off Craig's List. Last week he got us a free TV stand and yesterday he got us a free dishwasher! He's become so good at this I had to make a lens about it: I'm married to a Craigslist Junkie


8. Showers every day.


9. Shaves every day.


10. Answers the front door when a stranger comes knocking. I hate answering the doors to people I don't know. They want something from me and I don't like dealing with that at all.


11. Gets my suitcase down from the attic (and returns it after our trip).


12. Likes the Red Sox and the Celtics. He liked them even before we met - and I'm the one from Massachusetts, not him!


13. Likes to watch football (especially college football), baseball, and basketball. Now that's your American man!


14. Served in the military during the Vietnam war. Although he never went to Vietnam, all the boys at that time thought they would be going there and it was scary nonetheless. I didn't know him then but I'm proud of his service to our country.


15. Has a good driving record.


16. He asks for directions when lost. Believe it or not, I'm the one who won't ask for directions! I think it's because he puts practicality ahead of pride.

Financial Stuff

1. Balances his checkbook.


2. Pays his bills on time.


3. Uses his credit cards judiciously.


4. Keeps his credit report clean and in good standing.


5. Saves money. We're both good at that.

Family Stuff

1. Shows respect, love, and kindness towards my mother.


2. Gets along well with my family. We recently spent two weeks with my family at a beach condo where the noise level was high and the privacy minimal. He contributed in many ways, including cooking breakfast for the host couple and providing many of the groceries.


3. Keeps in contact with his own family.


4. Buys and sends greeting cards to his family.


5. Buys birthday and Christmas gifts for his family. Well, he used to anyway. The family gift-giving really tapered off a few years ago because of everyone's economy. Up to that time, though, he purchased the gifts, wrapped them and shipped them.

Stuff he doesn't do

1. Doesn't buy things he can't afford.


2. Doesn't over eat.


3. Doesn't comment on my weight.


4. Doesn't tell me what to eat.


5. Doesn't tell me what to think.


6. Doesn't tell me who I can hang out with.


7. Doesn't tell me which activities I can do.


8. Doesn't tell me how late I can stay out.


9. Doesn't expect me home at any certain time.


10. Doesn't expect me to cook his dinner.


11. Doesn't expect me to clean his clothes.


12. Doesn't order me around. I don't think he's ever told me to get him something. He'll either ask or go get it himself.


13. Doesn't hang out in bars.


14. Doesn't go to strip clubs.


15. Doesn't give me reason to be jealous.


16. Doesn't flirt with other women.


17. Doesn't do drugs.


18. Doesn't call me names. Derogatory names may be acceptable on a TV sitcom but not in a happy marriage. Names you will not hear at our house include "dingbat," "moron," "idiot," or "loser."


19. Doesn't yell or raise his voice. This has several good consequences:
    • Our home is safe and peaceful.
    • I don't have to walk on eggshells in fear of getting him angry.
    • When he does raise his voice, I know he's serious about something.


20. Doesn't do stuff (on purpose) to make me cry.

I've found a few women who have written positive things about their husband. If you know of any others, please let me know in the comments section near the bottom of the page.

Blogs
Deanna Shrodes from Florida wrote Stuff my husband does right.

43 Things
List 100 things I love about my husband.

Divine Caroline
Divine Caroline
From their web site: "We don't know any perfect women and if we did, we probably wouldn't want to hang around with them. At DivineCaroline, you'll be spending time with women who embrace the fact that life isn't always easy or beautiful or fair. Our dream is to give you a place to come together and express yourselves. What brings you joy. What breaks your heart. Makes you giggle. What pisses you off. Confuses you. Entertains you. What keeps you strong. And if all that sounds too heady, remember we're also discussing stuff like sketchy relatives and good kissers."

I've found some good articles, written by men, about "how to be a good husband."

Making Marriage (Like) Work is an article by Craig Stoltz who is a staff writer for the Washington Post. January 24, 2006. It is a review of the book, The Secrets of Happily Married Men (Jossey-Bass, 2006), by Scott Haltzman.

Better Husbands blog This blog has some really neat little tips for husbands and how they can help their wife in some really simple ways. I like that the tips are brief. A husband could scan the first page and get some good ideas.

A Good Husband This is a blog by Cory Huff, a husband who lives in Portland, Oregon. He wants a place online where husbands can discuss real issues in a positive, constructive way.

I don't know if this is written by a man or a woman, but I have a feeling it's written by a man so I'll include it here. It's a Wiki-How article called How to Be a Good Husband. This page includes links to several other good and helpful marriage articles so it's definitely click-worthy.

Love is patient, love is kind.
It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails.

∽ ∽ ∽ ∽ ∽ ∽ ∽ ∽ ∽ ∽ ∽

When I see my husband in the backyard mowing the lawn, I think to myself, "I love my husband! He's perfect for me." I started a mental list of things that he does around the house that I have taken for granted. I started this lens to record these things - for my sake and his. I need to remember the many good things he does. He needs to know that his efforts aren't going unnoticed and that I appreciate him and all he's done.

As I've been adding to the list, it starting to feel more like a job description than a gratitude list. It also brings this to mind: if he had known 20 years ago when we got married that this is what he'd be doing, would he have still said, "I do."

Lens enters a Squidoo challenge
I was visiting the SquidU Forum late one night and read about a challenge for Lensmasters to choose one of their lens and try to move it into Tier 1. That means its Lensrank would be a number between 1 and 2000. The Lensrank number is located in the upper left-hand corner of the lens, close to the title. I chose to enter this lens and have been focusing my efforts on improving its Lensrank.

Lens gets some love and blessings!
Before the challenge, this lens had been "liked" only 5 times. Four days later the lens has been "liked" 24 more times and received one Angel Blessing. Some Squidoo Lensmasters are called "Angels" and when they "bless" a lens it helps the lensrank. I've been receiving excellent feedback both here in the comments section and in the SquidU Forum.

Lens makes it to Tier 1 on October 22, 2010
This lens arrived at Tier 1 with a rank of 1,802.
It is #53 in the People category.
It received another Angel Blessing.
It received a Purple Star.

Click here to view the stats for this lens.

Click this icon to open the Stat Counter website.