One of my husband, Mark’s, and my favorite things to do is kiss in front of our kids. It totally grosses them out.
Recently, our 11-year-old daughter, Maddie, had one of her friends over. I’m not sure what Mark and I were working on, but we both happened to be in the kitchen. At some point, Maddie and her friend walked through the kitchen just as Mark and I gave each other a big hug and a kiss.
Now before you get the wrong impression, please know that I’m not talking a long embrace and passionate kiss. It was just one of those tight squeeze hugs and a quick little peck as we passed each other by.
But it was enough to stop my daughter’s friend in her tracks. She stood there staring at us with a completely shocked look on her face.
Not wanting to overly embarrass our daughter in front of her friend, Mark and I quickly stepped away from each other and went about our business. The girls got drinks out of the fridge and headed toward the family room.
As they walked out of the kitchen I heard her ask Maddie: “Do your parents do that all the time? Cause my parents never do that kind of thing.”
“Yeah,” Maddie responded very matter of factly. “They do.”
Mark and I looked at each other and smiled. It did my heart good to hear Maddie say that. Because even though Mark and my PDA’s (public displays of affection) may embarrass our kids sometimes, you know what else it does? It provides them with an outward sign of how much we truly love each other. A living witness to a promise we made to each other more than 15 years ago on our wedding day.
Give your spouse an unexpected hug or kiss today to let them know you love them. I’m sure they’ll appreciate it. But don’t stop there. Try to make it part of your daily ritual. I’m sure your spouse won’t mind.
