Don'ts For Wives

On a whim, I bought this little pocket sized book after being attracted by that title and reading the preface. It was written by Blanche Ebbutt and published nearly a century ago, in 1913. While there are points in the book that seem a little dated, many of the 'don'ts' are still useful for wives today.

The book is broken down into twelve chapters :

1. Personalities
2. How to avoid discord
3. Habits
4. Financial Matters
5. Evenings At Home
6. Jealousy
7. Recreation
8. Food
9. Dress
10. Entertaining
11. Household Management
12. Children

Sometimes the wordings and the ideas presented do seem old fashioned but when you think about the principles and intentions behind them, they don't need to be labeled with expiry dates at all.

For this post, I'm going to pick a random "Don't". I think I'll organize some of the others over a few other posts in the future.

Don't think its beneath you to put your husband slippers ready for him. On a cold evening, especially, it makes all the difference to his comfort if his soles are warmed through.

When I first stopped working, I sarcastically told a friend that I was staying home to bring my husband his slippers when he got home from work. Of course, I said it with the very thought of it being beneath me and absolutely no intention of doing anything like it. Now, even though I've still not done it (and will need to psych myself up a lot for it), I think it would be a very thoughtful gesture. Richard would be so surprised that he'll probably faint! But you can see how it may seem old fashioned (and maybe some people may argue sexist) but at the same time, its a very sweet and loving thing to do right?

Look out for more "Don'ts for Wives" in the future. There is also a companion book, "Don'ts for Husbands" that I'm planning to get my hands on.