My #1 Hack for Holding On Tight Even in the Choas of the Busiest Seasons

Feeling the pressure of life's relentless to-do list and summer bucket list?

In the finale episode of my third season, I'm revealing exactly how to ensure all of your relationships flourish, even when life throws chaos and overwhelm at you.  I'll teach you with my number one HACK to keep your calm and carry on, regardless of the hustle and bustle that may come your way. Get ready to fortify your bonds and strengthen all of your relationship with these simple and practical thoughts and gestures.


Download the FREE resource, "75 Ways to Show Gratitude to Your Loved Ones" HERE --> https://monicatanner.com/gratitude


I'm taking a short break for the summer to love on my family, but I'll be back soon with brand new and improved episodes and interviews you won't want to miss. So, here's to a summer of love, laughter, and gratitude, and I can't wait to engage with you when I return for an exciting fourth season starting in August.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:02

Have you ever wondered what makes the difference between those couples who absolutely love to be together and the ones who merely tolerate each other in their old age? Hi, I'm Monica Tanner, wife to a super hunky man, mom to four kids, relationship coach and intimacy expert. My goal with this podcast is to help you and your partner swap resentment for romance, escape the roommate rut and nurture a bond built on trust, communication and unconditional love. Each week, I'm sharing the secret strategies that keep couples madly in love, dedicated and downright giddy about each other, from the honeymoon phase to the golden years. I'm on a mission to crack the code of happily ever after. I'm on a mission to crack the code of Happily Ever After, and I'm sharing those juicy secrets right here, because an awesome marriage makes life so much sweeter. Let's get to it.

Speaker 1: 0:53

Hello and welcome to the Secrets of Happily Ever After podcast. I'm your host, monica Tanner, and today's episode is special for a couple different reasons. Number one it's May, which we lovingly refer to around the Tanner household as May-cember, with all of the kids' activities, with winding up, sports seasons and school teacher appreciation, graduation, the start of summer and all of the fun and excitement that that brings. May gets busy, and add to that, we kick off May with my wedding anniversary, in the middle of May we celebrate Mother's Day and at the end of May is my birthday, which is so much fun wrapped into just one month. But let's be honest, it gets a little stressful and emotions tend to run high around here, and so, on today's episode, I want to share my number one hack for getting through super busy seasons without losing your marbles. Another reason this episode is so special is because, after careful consideration of all of the exciting things we have coming up this summer, I've decided to make this the last episode of season three, so that I can love on my husband, spend quality time with my kids which, let's be honest, once they get to a certain age, you start to realize that you only have a certain amount of summers before they go and leave and start off on their incredible life adventures. I've already had one leave. I have a junior this year, so basically one summer left with her and a couple more that are just getting older, and I don't want to miss a thing. So I'll be taking a break from the podcast and all of my social media channels so that I can enjoy some really quality time and create some core memories with the people that mean the most to me, and I hope that you're getting excited to do the same. Season four of Secrets of Happily Ever After will ramp up in August with some really, really exciting and fun new things that I've been working on and I can't wait to tell you all about. So, from the bottom of my heart, I want to thank you to those of you who have supported season three of the podcast. My heart. I want to thank you to those of you who have supported season three of the podcast, left reviews, shared episodes with your friends. There's more great content to come in August. I will still be available to those of you in the Passionate Marriage Club, as well as my coaching clients, so if you need anything over the next couple of months, please don't hesitate to reach out. You can find all of the information for how to contact me on my website, monicatanercom.

Speaker 1: 3:55

All right, now let's talk about how to maximize connection, even when you feel pulled in a million different directions. This is so simple and so effective. Are you ready? Here it is Find ways to show gratitude and appreciation. I know, I know it's so simple, but I think, in the hustle and bustle, I know for me, I have a tendency to get hyper-focused on my to-do list and the things that are right in front of me, that I forget the big picture, and so I'm challenging myself and you to find simple ways to reach out, show gratitude to the people closest to you and the people who bless your life in all the ways. So for today's episode, I want to give you some super simple, fun and quick ways to show gratitude, because, as you know, not only does gratitude bless the person who you're showing it to, but more than anything, gratitude blesses you in your mindset, how you show up for each other and just in your general happiness and feelings of well-being. So the first super simple way to show gratitude is just to say thank you when you notice that someone's doing something to bless your life, make it easier or just showing up in a way that you appreciate, let them know.

Speaker 1: 5:21

You can do this, obviously, verbally, or I love little strategically placed notes. Get a cute pad of post-its, keep it somewhere where you'll see it often and challenge yourself to go through the entire pad of post-its just saying thank you for the little things that you notice that the people around you are doing. I like to leave them in cars, on mirrors, in the kitchen, on people's pillows. Sometimes I'll put them on the outdoor tools because I know my kids are going to go out and mow the lawn or do yard work, so I'll just put a little post-it note on the garden hose or the weed eater or on my husband's weeding gloves. There's no end to the fun places you can stick a cute little post-it note.

Speaker 1: 6:10

Another thing I love to do for my husband or my children is to take them on a little gratitude walk. We just go for a walk and I focus on the things I'm grateful for and then I let them know. It doesn't have to be cheesy or uncomfortable, but make it a point to highlight something you notice that they're doing well. Who doesn't love a little gratitude walk? Another fun way to show gratitude is, of course, just pick up a little treat or trinket or something that you know will brighten someone's day. Leave it on their doorstep, their pillow, in their tennis shoes. I like to see if I can hide little treats that I know my children will appreciate my husband as well, in the places they'll least expect it. If you really want to be snazzy, leave them a treat and a note. I also like to carve out some time in my day to find a chore or do an act of service for someone in my family. A lot of times this one they don't even have to know it was me Like make their bed, put their clothes away. Sometimes I'll just fold my husband's t-shirts Just a little quick way to say, hey, somebody around here thinks you're pretty cool.

Speaker 1: 7:24

Another fun way I love to show gratitude for my husband or my kids is to invite them outside late at night and just look at the stars or enjoy the sunset or sit out in a thunderstorm. And while we're spending time together, whether we're talking or just enjoying the peace and quiet, I like to think about how lucky I am and grateful for whoever is sitting next to me. Along that vein, another great way to show gratitude is to plan an outing. That's something you know the other person will enjoy. In the summer there's no shortage of really fun ways to do this, like plan a day to go mountain biking or kayaking or hiking. Depending on where you live, you could go surfing. There are so many ways to show gratitude, just by letting the person know that you're aware of them and you know the types of things that they love. Add their favorite foods to this little outing, and you've created so much connection with very little effort, all right. So those are just a few ideas, but I made a list of 75 quick, simple and effective ways to show gratitude to your spouse or your kids or anybody that you really care about, and it's just a downloadable cheat sheet that you can get by going to wwwmonicatanercom. Backslash gratitude.

Speaker 1: 8:56

Again, I want to thank you for supporting season three of the podcast. Get excited for some really cool things coming in August. When we start up season four. Remember if you need anything over the summer, feel free to reach out and enjoy your summer. Love on your family, create some core and remember to show your gratitude in ways big and small. And until next season, remember to have courage, be kind and stay on the brighter side. If you had as much fun as we did just now, I hope that you'll head over to your favorite podcast player and leave a rating and review for the show or share it on social media. That's how other people can find this awesome content and we can spread the message that Happily Ever After is possible. Feel free to check out my website, monicatannercom, to find out more ways you can work with me. And, as always, thank you so much for spending this time with me. We'll see you next week.