I am so blessed to announce that Rachel Wojnarowski is a contributor on Unveiled Wife! I respect Rachel for her sharing her insights about life and family on her blog rachelwojo.com. She is a passionate wife, a dedicated mother, and a gifted writer. God is using her in great ways to minister to other women and we have the privileged of having her share today on ways to discover gift ideas for our husbands!
Rachel writes:
Buying gifts for other people doesn’t seem to fall in my repertoire of God-given talents. Maybe it does for you, but seriously, I’ve needed help in this area. Some couples are ok with just telling each other what they would like as a gift, whether holiday, birthday, anniversary or whatever. Others agree not to buy each other anything for various reasons. Honestly, though, I think the best gifts are the ones that were completely unexpected OR they were expected – and exactly what the person wanted.
So how do you figure out what would really bless your husband in the area of gift-giving?
Here are six ways to help you discover a new thought process for finding great gift ideas for your man.
1. If you asked him what he wanted, what do you think he would say? Maybe something you saw him eyeing at the hardware store (power tools! ;).) Or time together? Think about what you think he would say if you simply requested to know.
2. To unearth your husband’s needs, think in terms of categories. What are his physical needs? What about his emotional needs? Spiritual? Educational? For example, has he mentioned that he wants to learn how to play the guitar better? Then a month or two of lessons might be the perfect match. Is his Bible falling apart or has he expressed a desire for a different translation? Filling that need might be just the thing. When you first think of the category, then gift ideas will follow.
3. Think of your husband’s personality. Is he creative and zany? Or practical and reliable? Let his personality traits direct your gift thoughts. The practical, reliable one might not enjoy a photo or momento as much as a new emergency kit for the car. The creative might not enjoy the emergency kit as a gift of celebration.
4. Ask yourself: What would he buy for himself that is within our budget? There are times where I’ve splurged a little on my husband and cut back on something else because I knew it was something he would buy or do if he felt the freedom for himself.
5. When my hubby and I chatted about this article, he felt that most people enjoy the gifts that are the most well thought-out. This requires thinking in advance- the day before his birthday probably isn’t going to cut it! So tuck those little “hints” away, post them in the notes of your phone or keep a list in your planner.
6. Reflect on any issues your spouse has that need solutions. Now I don’t mean buy a super duper alarm clock with four snooze buttons as the hint that your man has a hard time getting out of bed! But seriously, is there an issue that just “bugs” your spouse that has a solution? For instance, my cabinet space is limited and my spice cabinet has always been crammed. While I was out of town, my man bought some additional racks to place inside the pantry door for my spices. You already know that I love him for it, right?
With a little forethought and creativity, your gift-giving can become more enjoyable and less like a task. I’d love to hear about any ideas you use to find gift solutions for your husband; just leave them in the comments for us!
– Rachel Wojnarowski
