A Man's Gotta Do What A Man's Gotta Do

I really do hate the fact that Jon has to work long and hard hours in order to provide for our family.  If I could have it my way, and I'm sure you ladies out there want it your way too, our hubbies would get to go work at a place they love, that builds them up in their esteem and allows them to bring in the money to be our providers.  But, that isn't always (and almost never) the case.

When we were in Arkansas, Jon and I had DREAM jobs.  We worked side by side every day being stay at home parents to a group of boys.  Get this, we got paid to raise children and not go off to work so we can be their 'mom' and 'dad' figure 100% of the time.  It was truly the greatest job we had ever had (aside from all the logistical stuff).  Jon would get up and make the boys breakfast and their lunch for school, then he'd send in our little 3 yr old to wake me up to help get him cleaned and dressed for preschool.  We'd sit and have coffee together while the boys watched their Phineus and Ferb before their school bus or van would arrive.  We cleaned house together, did yard work together, and well, enjoyed our 'family' of 10 together all at the age of 23.    We had it made!  But reality kicked in not far later, and now we're broke, the seven boys are far away, and our 3,500 sq ft home has transformed into a living room at my parents.

Now, as I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm choosing to see this new stage in life as a beautiful adventure of something we can CREATE from scratch, and I am continuing to do so, but part of this adventure is watching my handsome and ever loving hubby leave early for work in the morning, kiss his two girls goodbye, and work his tail end off in construction.  Construction isn't Jon's passion, career choice or even payroll job.  He applied to over 15 places (Costco even) and had little to no return on those applications.  But he had to do what he had to do.  So, he kicked his pride to the curb and went to work for his older brother (who, by the way, has been extremely generous and kind and for that we are greatly appreciative).

My husband is a great man, as I'm sure your husbands are as well.  This man is someone I respect the most (though I can always show it more) and I strive to compliment every day (though I'm sure some days I fail miserably).  If I could, I would take all of our burdens off of his shoulders and onto mine.  I wish I could take this extreme heat he's been having to work in and be his "air conditioning".  I wish I could take all the dirt he gets covered in every day and wash it away.  I wish I could give him extra minutes, no, make that hours in the night so he can catch up on rest.  I wish I could get rid of these stretch marks and baby fat so he can have his "hott" wife back.  But at the end of every day, every sweat and sunburn, every paint stain and broken boot, he wouldn't let me try to carry an ounce of burden and he'd save every stretch mark in his visual memory because that's the man I married... He loves me and I can thank him EVERY DAY for what he does for our family, for me, and for this world!  He is a very special man, that man of mine!