I’m someone that enjoys giving gifts to people I love. My whole family is like this as well. My husband, however, was raised differently. Now, don’t think I’m some superficial greedy chick calling out my husband. I’m just trying to steer men in a better direction.
I teach my children it’s better to give than to receive because I want them to have big open hearts. But seriously guys, your gift-giving has got to dig a little deeper. Unless she specifically asks for any of the items below I would just skip them altogether.
What not to gift your Wife / Mother:
- Pets – Unless she specifically asked for a pet, just don’t even let it cross your mind. It’s another thing for her to take care of and clean up after. As if you and the kids weren’t enough work.
- Cleaning Appliances – Seriously? You might as well tell her she sucks as a Wife or Mother. If my husband brought a vacuum home I’d beat him with it.
- Clothing – You’re going to insult her if you get the wrong size no matter what. Too big, she’s fat. Too small, and you’re implying she needs to lose weight. Stick with a gift card to her favorite shop. She’ll like picking out the outfit anyways.
- Fitness Products – Hey honey, I thought you’d love to use this exercise ball to lose that baby weight. Enough said.
- Stuffed Animals – We aren’t 6.
- Video Games – Call of Duty isn’t the top of the must-play list for most women. They’re too busy using the vacuum.
- Naughty Nurse Outfits – If we wanted to portray the naughty nurse you’d have already seen it. Trust me.
- Kitchen Utensils – Along the lines of telling your wife she needs to clean, is telling her she belongs in the kitchen.
- Breakfast in Bed – The thought is great but what she really wants is to sleep in, uninterrupted. If you do end up making breakfast in bed, make sure you clean up (thoroughly, no dishes in the sink or crumbs on the counter) after you make it.
- As Seen on TV – Pretty much all of it. Unless it’s a Snuggie, I don’t care what anyone says, Snuggie’s are the bomb!
Just put a little more effort into your gift-giving men or be simple with a sweet note telling us how much you care. It is the thought that counts, but anything from the list above didn’t take much thought.
Here is a tip fellas, I’m 95% sure that your lady friend has a Pinterest account. Go to it and just look around on the different boards. You’ll find hundreds if not thousands of gift ideas.
Sorry honey, I know the fish was the kid’s idea but you should have vetoed and headed for the Chocolate.
Great post!!! I’m coming up on 24 years of marriage. These made me LOL so much that my dog looked at me funny. Oh the comments I could make, but I’m afraid my hubby would read this. 🙂 I did receive a PDA (remember those; pre-iphone, pre-cellular, pre-tech) once for Mother’s Day to help me organize my stay-at-home-mom schedule… You have to understand boys – they love to solve problems and we need to encourage that helping attitude in order to have a happy life. Aiming for 24 more years…