we can agree that when it comes to relationships, it truly is the small gestures that make the most significant impact. sure, jewelry or flowers are nice sometimes but i find that it is the every day moments that continue to build the connection between myself and my husband.
we have started incorporating these sentences into our conversations (both in person and via text) and they have made a profound impact for both of us. below are 7 sentences to enhance your relationship.
1. “i am in love with you.”
this one has truly been a game changer for us. chances are ‘i love you’ has become routine and while those are still powerful words, adding ‘IN love’ with you feels deeper and unexpected. we say ‘i love you’ to our children, our parents, our friends and our dogs but there is only one person we are in love with – so let your sweetie know!
2. “i appreciate you.”
saying ‘thank you’ can go along way but saying ‘i appreciate you’ goes even farther. this says that you care deeply and appreciate the different things that initially attracted you about your spouse.
3. “i hear you.”
this one is especially important to me. i have found that often times when i am complaining or needing to vent to my husband, he often wants to fix whatever it is that appears to be ailing me. often times, i just want to be heard. by him saying “i hear you and that sounds tough” validates that he’s listening and cares.
4. “i am so proud of you!”
that promotion your spouse has been working hard to get or the efforts put into training for a race? instead of staying ‘great work!’ let your spouse know how proud you are of him or her. just because we aren’t kids anymore doesn’t mean we no longer need to hear that someone is proud of us, especially from one of the most important people in our lives.
5. “here’s what i love about us…”
my husband and i started saying this one when we were doing monotonous things like running errands or standing in line at the grocery store. in these instances, i said “what i love about us is that we can laugh and have a good time no matter where we are or what we are doing.” that gives you a common bond and shows you are paying attention.
6. “can i help you with that?”
this shows that you are paying attention and willing to put in effort. if your spouse is always the one to take out the trash or do the laundry, offer and ask if you can help. it is also important that when our spouse asks this, we are willing to accept help!
7. “here’s what i need more of…”
relationships and marriages remain strong when communication is strong. we are not mind-readers (but if you are – i hope you are capitalizing on it), we need to let our significant others know what we need more of. it’s important to make these requests in a loving and respectful way. if you need more help around the house – ask. if you need your partner to come home earlier – ask. if you need more romantic evenings away – ask. people don’t know what is needed unless we use our words to say so!
my challenge to you is to say one of these sentences to your spouse today and see what reaction you get from him/her!
