Granted, some people seem to have to work harder at their marriages than others, but it’s still possible to have a very happy marriage. I find the following 7 ingredients for a happy marriage ring true for my own and hopefully you’ll see some ‘ingredients’ that also show up in yours. Feel free to tell me what you think about this list and add your own ingredients in the comment section!
If you can’t forgive one another, then how will you ever reconcile your differences? Arguments happen between people, no matter how much they love one another, but couples should be able to forgive one another at the end of the day.
You don’t always have to have everything your way and your spouse doesn’t always need to either. Be willing to give in every now and then. Marriage is a give and take relationship. There’s no reason why you both can’t make sacrifices now and again to make the other person happy. I would not only find it boring to always get what I wanted, but I would also feel bad for depriving my husband of something that would make him happy.
Not all marriages revolve around love, but I think this is a key ingredient for a truly happy marriage. When you love one another it’s possible to do things that make the other person feel good, to provide support when necessary, and to do things out of the goodness of your heart instead of feeling like you have to.
I think it’s important for a married couple to be able to have a working friendship, as well as a romantic life together. It’s actually much harder to love someone whom you dislike. It seems like with friendship comes many of the other ingredients in this list.
Being able to trust one another takes away the possibility of doubt in many areas of a marriage, such as; money issues, fidelity, or even judgment on certain situations. Most people have to trust one another before they every say their vows. It’s important to maintain a high level of trust throughout a marriage in order to make life together a more enjoyable experience.
They always say laughter is the best medicine and I wholeheartedly agree. My husband and I are always laughing about something during the day. I think we have yet to go a day without finding something to laugh about. It’s always good to be able to laugh at yourself at times too. Don’t be over-sensitive about things or you might find yourself frowning more than laughing.
Couples need to be able to talk openly with one another for a marriage to work well. If you both hide things from one another or don’t talk about what’s bothering you, then mistrust and anger tend to build up. This pent up anger and mistrust can erupt into a nasty mess that might be difficult to clean up.
I think this list contains an excellent collection of 7 ingredients for a happy marriage. Even if you’re able to have the majority of these ingredients, the rest should follow close behind. What do you think is the number one ingredient for a happy relationship between husband and wife?
Top Photo Credit: Still Pond Photography