All I Really Needed to Know About Marriage I Learned on My Honeymoon...

Despite warnings that the honeymoon would not be real life, I cannot help but think back on how significant it was for our relationship. During that time we experienced the Road to Hana in a convertible Mustang, and snorkeled with sea turtles off the coast of Maui. But even more important, my husband and I are realizing that the honeymoon doesn’t have to be over yet!

In the midst of jobs, responsibilities, and someday kids, my husband and I can still practice making our marriage even more fun, relaxing, and refreshing as our first two weeks alone together!  Everyday life seems determined to drain our marriage of all its beauty and color, but then I remember that our love can actually keep growing stronger!
  
Here’s how to bring your honeymoon back into your house today: 

1)    There is nothing that a little bubble bath can’t fix!
Fill the tub {lots of bubbles ofcourse!}, light the candles, play some soft music and jump in!  I always blushed when a mentor of mine would mention that bubble baths were a great way to enjoy one another. But now… all the red is gone from my cheeks! I can confidently say the bath tub is our little sanctuary where we can reconnect after a long hard day. The first thing we checked out in our honeymoon hotels was always the bath tub! And to this day, it’s still a priority!

2)     Take time to clean.
And no...not house cleaning! I remember the months leading up to our wedding, the night before, and our honeymoon, how intricately I took care of every part of my body ; ) Shaving my legs and other odd hairs down there, smelling pretty, and looking fresh were just things I did. I delighted in preparing myself to be a beautiful bride for my husband and I don’t want to neglect that even though we are more relaxed with one another.  All it takes is a few extra minutes in the shower or the bathroom to tidy up for your man! It’s a simple way to say you are excited to be with him!

3)    Wear lingerie… often!
I remember my husband’s excitement each day of our honeymoon- he couldn’t wait to see what I would have on! These sexy surprises don’t have to end even though you have been married for months or years. Of course our husbands still love us in our flannel jammies, but a little extra something can go a long way!

4)    Take walks together holding hands
We had an opportunity to do this every day of our honeymoon. Sometimes we had a destination in mind, other times we wanted to just be together. Now that we are married we don’t always have the time to do this, but we try our best to make time. Now our destination when we walk is simply this- growing closer to each other and taking the time to let our hearts bond as a couple.

5)    Give massages.
Touch is a powerful little tool in marriage that often gets ignored.  On our honeymoon we brought fun and pretty smelling massage oils with us. One of the most romantic things we did together was take just 5-10 minutes at the end of the day to give each other a much needed massage. Relaxing and rejuvenating are two words that come to mind! 

6)    An argument does not have to ruin the day.
I thought it would be impossible to fight on a honeymoon. But it’s not! No couple is immune from the disease of selfishness. I often find myself thinking back to the days of our honeymoon when we fought with a backdrop of palm trees and sunshine. The time we had together was too precious to hold grudges or carry unforgiveness the whole day- we had oceans to swim in and sunsets to watch.  When disagreements arise I still want to remember that life is beautiful and my husband is too amazing to let bitterness and anger fill our marriage.  

7)    Watch the sunset.
When was the last time you sat and watched God paint the sky together? The sunset reminds us of God’s faithfulness in our lives and in our marriage. We cannot do it without Him. During our honeymoon and still today, my husband and I always try to steal each other away for those thirty minutes – it’s romantic and brings perspective to our lives. God is painting our relationship more beautifully with each passing day.

8)    Sleep in late together!
What’s the rush? Let’s be honest, honeymoons are a little deceiving in this area. I was tempted to think that 50% of married life would occur in bed. Obviously, that’s not true! But there is something sacred about staying in bed together… it’s an art that needs practice! Snuggling, reading, and having no plans, but to just relax under a big comfy down comforter, work wonders for married life!  Even when kids come along, there are still ways to make this one of your responsibilities as a married couple!

9)    Be adventurous!
Take a map, hop in the car, and go discover new places! My husband and I spent many days of our honeymoon just exploring- Hawaii and each other ;)  Busyness kills the fun of married life, while adventure keeps time together as couple fresh and full of memories!

10)    Take goofy pictures.
Yep. The kind where hold out your long beautiful arm, and where the photo is 90% of contorted faces and 10% scenery.  Although you may not be discovering the waterfalls of Jamaica together today, you can still capture the love between the two of you through one click of the camera! And not to mention the laughs that always come from looking at the photo afterwards.

24 hours together for 14 days equaled many lessons learned.  Only now am I beginning to realize that everything I needed to know about marriage, I learned on our honeymoon! Okay, so maybe I didn’t learn everything, but it was enough for me to realize our honeymoon doesn’t have to end in one year, five years, or twenty years!  Our one bedroom garden cottage in South Africa can still have the feel of a romantic cabin in the woods, with snow all around us, and warm hot chocolate brewing on the stove. 

What are things you want to remember from your honeymoon that can spice up your marriage?

Discover the Real Breakfast of Champions!


Join me over at "She Just Got Married" today as I share one my humorous newlywed discoveries!
Trust me, this one is for engaged or married ladies only :) Hehe!
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To-Do #17: Let 'em go!

One of the most difficult things to surrender in my life, at this point, is my husband. If God asks for anything else, I will gladly give it, but when it comes to laying down my man before Him- no way! 


My husband is my best friend. Since moving to South Africa, I have relied on my husband for everything. In a new country, with new friends, a new language, a new culture, I don’t know what I would do without Him. I want Him to be there for me all the time, in every way, and most importantly never ever let me down.  The expectations I have placed on my husband are so high, that it is impossible for him to measure up to them all.


Surrender would mean letting him be free from my expectations. Releasing him from the pressure I know he feels, to please me and make sure I’m happy all the time. He has gone above and beyond my expectations in loving me and caring for me, but I want to do the same. Although emotionally, I don’t feel that I can do this, I know I need to…

I need to surrender my husband. 


This is the deepest love I can show him.  A love that says, “I trust God with your life. I know He will take care of both of us.” This kind of love does not come naturally for me, but the other night God flooded my heart with this love. 

As I received God’s words speaking over me, “Let him go…” I, in turn, wrote these words, 

sorry for making you hurt
i feel like it’s all i do
i wish i could make it better
and make all things new

i know God will heal us
forgive us, change us, renew us
he will grow our marriage stronger
even when we fail Him

i love you so much Michal
in all i say i do I desperately want you to see
that you are the only one for me

im setting you free tonight
giving you to God
I am not placing my expectation in you
but only in my Rock

you are free to do as you please
to enjoy what makes you smile
don't ever worry that I won't be okay
cause I’m learning who i trust

even when we are seperate
i know that i am always welcomed back
into your arms

which by the way is the great place in all the world
besides heaven ofcourse
but to be held by you and loved by you
is the best feeling i've ever felt

i love you so much

Tearfully, I read this poem to my husband. I knew that this was a turning point in our marriage. This only happened a few weeks ago, but since then I have had to make a conscious decision everyday to surrender him… again and again and again.

He does not have to know I am doing this, I only want him to feel it and see it, by the way I am treating him.

The thing that is most dear to us is always the most difficult to give over to God. And for me, at this point in my life, that is my husband.


I have heard from many young women, engaged and married, that surrendering our husbands is extremely difficult.  We consciously and unconsciously cling to them for identity, support, encouragement, advice, and love. We do this because we love them so much. This is the way God made us as women. But it does not stop there.

Our love also needs to go a step further into the realm of surrender. I am learning that more than a one- time prayer to God,
“Lord, I surrender my husband,”
        surrender, is also constant and conscious act of grace everyday of our lives.

Surrender, from my perspective is more than giving up, it actually signifies gain, for both you and your husband.

You both gain…
greater trust and reliance on God.
more intimacy with one another.
more freedom to be yourselves.
healthier and more stable marriage.

Surrender is NOT saying “I can do this life on my own, I don’t need you anymore!”
Rather, surrender IS saying, “We are both imperfect and therefore cannot rely on each other all the time. We must keep God as the center or we will never make it.”

Surrendering our husbands, gives God the freedom He needs to work in our individual lives and in our marriage.


So what are you waiting for… Let him go!

In what ways have you been trying to control your husband or husband-to-be?

Rather than wait until after you big day to do this, go before God now and surrender your husband completely to Him… Besides he is better off in God’s hands than in yours!

To-Do #16: Keep It Simple!

A recent episode and all too often occurence sparked this post. Here is what I learned and how to avoid falling into the same trap I did, and do regularly!


It's entitled, "How to Lose a Date with Hubby in 10 Minutes" Here are steps 1-5...

1)    Start reading into every little thing your husband is saying and doing on the way to the date. Aka: Get really over analytical and super sensitive {saying things like “Are you okay?”, “ What’s wrong?”, “You look like you don’t really want to be here…”}

2)    Continue to let your feelings dictate the evening… feelings of frustration inside you are blurted out in words, “Let’s just sit here…”, “Or what about this place…”

3)    Instead of letting hubby decide on the place to sit and eat you offer your suggestions in harsh tones and sighs of frustration while also rolling your eyes. {Just flat out emotional manipulation.}

4)    Act like a woMAN and decide that sitting outside in the cold is best {even though you are absolutely freezing!}, but at this point you are just “punishing” him for the way he is acting and how indecisive he is being.

5)    You have now succeeded in making the both of you feel miserable. {Congratulations!} You are angry because he is acting like he doesn’t want to be on a date with you, and he is angry because you are being so stinkin’ controlling and emotional.


Click on over to "She Just Got Married Blog" to read the rest!!


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To-Do #15: Bring Him the Whole Package!

 “Floating heads.” With just two words, this phrase caught me off guard. I could not read any further in the article. My mind began to fill with images of the days when I sat shivering in front of the heater, while a heavy blanket of insecurity covered my inner and outer beauty from me. The mirror revealed my destiny- I had to keep trying. I was still not whole. I squirmed in my chair as my thoughts took me back to a place when I was desperately seeking fulfillment- in all the wrong places.
It was a place where the groans of an empty stomach were more appetizing than the laughter of a confident heart. I had exchanged the delight of being a vibrant confident woman, for being a” floating head.” Not exactly the bargain I intended to make, nor what I aspired to be in life. 


Happiness. Health. Wholeness. These were foreign concepts to a girl who had become an expert at denial. Although an eating disorder left me nibbling the crumbs of cake, I was also taking meager servings of life. Life was a single scene running over in my mind- how to stay thin. 

I did not need a doctor or a psychiatrist to tell me the prognosis- I was dying on the outside and the inside. The thought of never being able to have children crossed my mind on occasion, but it was not enough motivation to make me want to gain weight. The realization that this obsession was sabotaging every relationship in my life had the strength of a flickering light; its impact was too weak for me to want healing. 

My femininity was dissolving quickly. Taking with it my health, happiness, and wholeness. I never wanted to return to that place again. 

The article I was reading this past week titled, “National Obsession,” by Counseling Today, got me thinking about my past, as well as many other women who struggle in this area of body image.  Its contents laid bare the gruesome details and statistics of eating disorders that are now common place in today’s society.  Women are willingly sacrificing their innate beauty for a plastic shell of superficiality. 

Perhaps even worse was this- starting in the first grade, young girls were already being awakened to their weight and appearance. Their carefree childhood snatched away amidst the fears of gaining weight and becoming fat. 

But the two words in the middle of the article had the most impact on me.   

A counselor spoke of how she called her eating disorder clients, “floating heads.” She continued, “They are so disconnected with their own bodies, they don't even recognize body sensations, and if they do recognize body sensations, they automatically interpret them as 'something is wrong’.”

A wave of sadness rushed over me. I exhaled with a heavy sigh. 

Floating heads. I whispered it again to myself. These two words made me cringe because I knew they described the fate of many women today. One honest young woman wrote the following words to me, in regards to how she perceives herself, “I'm not in a place where I have a healthy self-image at all. There was a time when I did, and I know I will get there at some point again, but God is working hard on me in this area, and Satan is trying even harder.”

Unfortunately this is true for many women, the enemy is trying his best to get us to subscribe to a destructive diet that tells us to hunt for wholeness outside of Christ, in appearances, exercise, careers, activities, relationship, food…you can fill in the blank. As a result we become satisfied with temporary fulfillment, and we are left skimping out on real life. Living in wholeness is a distant dream, a floating head is our reality. 

Although popular, beware of this deadly diet! It amounts to nothing but…

Physical sickness. Relational emptiness. Spiritual dryness. Emotional exhaustion. Sexual insecurity. 

Do you realize that your wholeness comes from Christ alone? We become beautiful women as we shamelessly indulge in the abundant life that God has given us.

When I finally had this revelation I began leaping up and down my hallway exclaiming, “I am a woman!”  (When was the last time you did that?!) 

Contrary to being an overly exuberant and outspoken feminist, I was simply declaring that I was fully alive. God had shown me the emptiness of trying to find wholeness and femininity in the fleeting fads of the world. I was finally taking big bites of life. 

More than just a head out of touch with the rest of my body, I became a whole woman. Body, soul, and spirit. No longer floating around without purpose, I became securely grounded in the truth. (Ephesians 3:19) 

Physically strong. Relationally fulfilled. Spiritually alive. Emotionally stable. Sexually confident. 

This is a revelation worth tasting for yourselves!  It is sweeter than chocolate because it will also melt over into our marriage. So… can you remember when you consciously took an oversized portion of life? Has it been awhile since you have savored and enjoyed your marriage? 

A singing soul and energetic spirit brings more vitality to our marriage than our physical appearance or lame endeavors to find wholeness ever will. (Proverbs 31:30) 

Instead of constantly taking from our husbands, thinking they can fill what is lacking in our lives, we can be fulfilled women, who confidently give ourselves without restraint to our husband- emotionally, spiritually, and physically. 

Our husbands will be overjoyed to know that we are not ashamed to be a woman, boldly asking for second helpings of the life God has given us. Intimacy with our true love will be revitalized, and furious love making sessions will ensue when we are a happy, healthy, and whole woman. Besides, this is way more attractive than the national obsession of being a floating head!

Would you characterize yourself as happy, healthy, and whole?
Are you taking meager servings of life- do you need God to take you off this diet so that you can celebrate your femininity and your marriage?

 This post was also featured on Shannon Ethridge's Sexually Confident Wife Blog.

To-Do #14: Speak His Heart Language...

We all know men speak another language than women. Husbands and wives naturally communicate in entirely different styles. But add to that mix, the fact my husband’s first language is Afrikaans. Although he speaks better and more eloquent English than me, I was convinced our marriage would never be hindered by any language barriers. Or at least that is what I thought!
About a year before my husband and I were engaged a friend asked me, “So are you going to learn Afrikaans?”

Wondering if I am taking on the challenge of learning to speak my hubby's heart language?  
Check out the rest, over at author/speaker Tricia Goyer's Website...

To Do #13- Learn What's Better Than a Morning Cup of Coffee!

Although you may only be engaged, it is not too late to start asking God to give you his perspective on this amazing gift that he has given us in marriage- __ __ __ {SEX!} It is something I had to work through while I was preparing for marriage  {just saying the word took practice for me!}, since I became more fully aware of all the misconceptions and wrong ideas I had about sex. Although I was giddy with anticipation for the wedding night, I also wanted to make sure there was nothing that hindered me from giving all of me to my husband. 

As wives, this is one of the greatest gifts we can give our husbands- our desire for him sexually. {I can’t believe I am writing about this, considering I would be at least 4 shades of red by now!!} 

But God has changed me. I asked him to. I wanted to have His perspective on this beautiful gift of sex. I knew my naïve beliefs and ideas would not make for a healthy marriage. 

So for today’s to-do, I would challenge you as a soon- to- be wife to begin to see sex as better than your morning cup of coffee! {Eeeekkk! I can’t believe I’m saying this!} If you are not a coffee drinker than fill in the blank with whatever calls you out of bed in the morning, awakes your senses, and gets you going. For me, it’s normally a big bowl of cereal or a steaming cup of hot chocolate. 

Having this perspective will bring so much freedom into your marriage. Sex is something that excites, revitalizes, and energizes you and your husband. Sex should be a source of joy and pleasure within a marriage, awakening your love for one another on a continual basis. Indeed it is even better than a cup of coffee in the morning!

Without sharing too much detail, I can say that my husband and I have been discovering the beauty of sex. It just keeps getting better and better. We are learning, that more than just a physical act, that might rejuvenate our tired bodies, sex runs much deeper. It draws us spiritually together. It builds as closer in our friendship. Sex also brings a unity, that does not just stay in the bedroom, but binds us together in our everyday lives, our hearts, and decisions. Sex is better than a morning cup of coffee for more reasons that I can list!

But sadly, some women would rather roll out of bed for a low-fat caramel mocha, rather than some intimate time with the love of their life. {not saying you can’t have both!} But as I read in one book, “Husbands want sex in the morning, wives want sex in June.” Let this statistic not define us as women. It’s time we start learning to sip a cup of our husband’s love before taking in a cupful of caffeine. 

Don’t think sex can be this good? Then there is no better time than to start preparing yourself for the beauty of sex within marriage, than while you are engaged. Ask God to come and give you His idea of sex. I guarantee you He will help you to see that it is more delightful than a morning cup of coffee. Sex with our husband is one thing that we can get addicted too! { yipes! Is that me talking!} 

So before you drive down to Starbuck's to get your coffee fix for the day, let God fix your eyes on Him, so that you can see sex within marriage for what it really is. 
Now that's yummy!