Mike and I had been married for a few months when we decided to try an experiment. Last thing before falling asleep, we would each say three things that the other person did that day that we liked. It felt awkward and cheesy at first, but it grew on us over time.
Seven and a half years later, this practice continues every evening in our home. I think it’s the best experiment we ever tried. It’s easy to take your spouse for granted. Our “three things I liked today” ritual helps us recognize the little (and big) things we do for one another, and it’s nice to know that we are ending each day with a focus on the positives in our relationship.
Mike puts Emma to bed most nights, and a few months ago he started the “three things I liked today” ritual with her. He’ll tell her three things he liked that she did and she tells him some things she liked about her day (usually more than three). Besides ending her day with a focus on what she enjoyed about the day, this helps us learn more about what she likes and what is important to her. I’ll do the same during the day, often right before Mike gets home. Emma is still perfecting her understanding of time, and sometimes she talks about things that happened several days ago. That’s fine – we learn what things she likes so much that she remembers them for days (or months). And she always tells Mike, “I liked how Mama made dinner” – that makes my day!
MaryAnne is a craft loving educator, musician, photographer, and writer who lives in Silicon Valley with her husband Mike and their four children.
Such a great tradition, both for partners and for our kids. It’s a wonderful reminder to be grateful for all we have.
I love this idea!!! I will try this tonight!
We do something similar – a “best and worst” of the day – around the dinner table. Our son is only (just) four, but it’s nice to be able to reflect on our day. It usually ends up being a lot more of the “best” parts anyway – and remembering the things we had fun doing together.
This is a fun thing to do to end on a positive note…we’ve written ours in a notebook before (we not very consistent) and it’s really fun to read it.
That is such a great idea. When I think of the effect it could have on our family… we’ll have to try it.
You’ve started a great tradition!
What a great thing to do at bedtime. We’ve done something similar to this off and on but it hasn’t ever really stuck as much as I’d like it to. I’ll keep trying.
What a beautiful ritual! Thanks for sharing such a great idea.
This is a really great idea. Thanks for the inspiration! I know I tend to focus sometimes on the things that didn’t get done; I love the idea of ending the day on such a positive note.
We ask each other about our favorite part of the day every night before going to bed. Good idea to start sharing those kinds of things with the kiddos too! :-)Valerie