My husband has been working in Chicago since the middle of August, and will continue to do so until the end of March. His company has been very generous and because of this he has been able to come home every weekend. His absence has been hard on our children, and it has been hard on me. You see, my husband is a phenomenal father.
When he first went away it was hard, but I thought I knew what I was signing up for so I made due. We changed a few of our family night time rituals to make up for his lack of being here, and have adapted. But as time has gone on his being away is really weighing me. It is hard to go from having a wonderful leader and help mate every night of the week to having one only two days a week. The responsibility of me raising our four children alone is getting heavier and heavier for me to bear - which only speaks to his greatness.
That being said - he knew that I was nearing a meltdown and called to let me know that on Friday he had arranged for my in-laws to take the kids for a while so that he could take me out to dinner and to peruse the local book store. Today, he let me know that if I needed to get out for a bit that I was more than welcome to. I took him up on his offer and met up for a little while with a girlfriend who is a single mother and who would be able to truly understand what I was going through.
When I came home I found him playing a game with the kids that he made up in which each of the kids was on a two man team and they were trying to score points by getting through various obstacles in the house. THIS is why I miss this man so much. As I type this I can hear laughter from all of the kids as they cheer on "Team Awesome" and "Team Chocolate" to a victory.
He will continue to play with them for hours on end. Just being with them, laughing with them, and creating memories with them. This time with them is nothing new - he has been doing this since the day they were born. Carving special time with them sometimes one on one and sometimes with all of them together. He knows how much I need a break, and he provides me with that. I am grateful for a night off. I miss him terribly for so many reasons, but none greater than the fact that I miss watching him be a dad to our children.
I know that at the end of the day this work assignment will pay off, and that all of our sacrifice will have been worth it. In the meantime though, his absence is felt greatly - not just by me, but by all of us. How thankful I am that I met such an incredible man at such a young age who turned out to be the BEST father in the whole wide world.
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