I had just come back from the grocery store, was already overwhelmed at the to-do list that was waiting for me, and I wasn’t even through the door yet. I knew that there was going to be a sink full of dishes, a living room that was a wreck, and I’m pretty sure that I had left the hallway strewn with Cheerios. But in our desperate need for milk and diapers, I had left the kids with my husband and ran out the door deciding I would just have to get it all cleaned up later once the kids were in bed.

 

“Seriously, why do I always have so much to do? ” I thought to myself.

 

As I walked in with arms full of grocery bags, I was shocked to look down and see that the Cheerios had been swept up. I kept walking down the hallway and looked into the living room to see that a majority of the toys had been put away, heck even the throw blankets were folded and laid on the couch! But when I turned the corner, that’s when I saw it. And it was the sexiest thing I had ever seen.

 

There he was, my husband standing over the sink, drying the last of the dishes.

 

The dishes that had been overflowing in the sink when I left. The dishes that were weighing down my heart knowing that they were going to be there when I got home. The dishes that were just one more thing I was going to have to do that would take away from me being able to simply breathe and enjoy the evening with my husband.

 

“Everything is clean!” I shrieked in joy. I set the bags down onto the counter and began to cry. “Thank you. Just thank you. You have no idea how much I needed this tonight,” I said.

 

We stood there and just held each other for a minute until the kids came running into the room. In those few moments, I was reminded of how much I truly love my husband. And just what a gift he is to me in his willingness to be a helper.

 

Once we got the kids to bed, we both plopped down onto the couch, picking up our phones and beginning to do our normal post-bedtime routine browsing. But that was when I couldn’t help myself any longer. I put my phone down and walked over to my husband, stretching out my hands for his. “Come on, let’s go,” I said.

 

“Let’s go? . . . OH! Let’s go!” He said as he quickly jumped up from the couch. And off to the bedroom we went.

 

Sometimes as women we carry our to-do lists around like a ball and chain. They literally weigh us down, not just physically but mentally, too. These lists keep us busy. And often times they keep us from wanting to “get busy” with our husbands. We have the hardest time shutting off our minds and letting the dishes sit in the sink and the mess stay messy.

 

But when our men step in and lift some of the burdens that we carry around, it frees our souls to be the women we truly desire to be… and that includes the women we want to be in the bedroom. By being my partner and helper like he did that day and so many other days before that, he allowed me to simply be his wife. And this isn’t just advice for the men, this is for the ladies, too. Being a willing helper in your marriage changes everything. And isn’t that what marriage is about?

 

Being a helper?

 

Small things done in great love gives way to small steps towards great lovin’ for this busy mama. And I’m guessing it does for you, too. So be a helper this week. Let yourself be helped. And guys, never forget that a man drying dishes is the sexiest thing your woman will see all day.