I’ve touched on this briefly from time to time, but I figured it was maybe time to devote an entire post to it.
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| I married the most wonderful man in the world. |
Yep. No joke!
We’ve been married for nearly 32 months (3 yrs on July19!), and we’ve definitely had our ups and downs.
For the first 39 months of dating, we both had steady jobs and very few responsibilities, which meant we also had plenty of income to cover the bills and have fun whenever we wanted. This means lot of laughter, lots of carefree new romance dates, and lots of easy lovin’. 🙂
Then we got married, and just like that, it seems our luck changed. Well, either that or the worst recession since the Great Depression hit the US, and unfortunately we both work in industries that were hit hard. *sigh*
However, this isn’t about a pity party for us and our string of unemployment luck throughout our marriage thus far.
This is about how my husband… the dear that he is… the kind, generous, caring, compassionate, loving person that he is… has always “done what needs to be done” for our family. I know it’s pretty old fashioned, but it’s something he feels very strongly about. The first time he was laid off, he had a really hard time with not being “the provider,” and quite honestly, he was also just bored. He likes to work and he loves his job…that’s a blessing that many don’t find. I’m still struggling to find a career path that I love!
Last fall Char.lie got laid off again, and in December the business I was working at closed…supposedly for two weeks over the holidays, but it’s turning into probably five months. Thankfully we were both able to collect unemployment, and between both of our unemployment checks and odd jobs, we were able to cover the bills. Then…his unemployment ran out.
FYI – for those who are curious, he’s in construction, and there is ZERO work around here. His father (and boss) is very well known and well respected in our area and has built hundreds of homes. His father’s best friend (who he has also done work for) has 75 employees normally in his concrete business – and right now is down to five. FIVE. There are literally hundreds of unemployed people in our tiny area right now with NO jobs to speak of, so please don’t think we’re lazy and haven’t been looking for other employment in the area!
Anyway, Charlie’s BFF has worked on the oil rigs for eight years, and the week that his unemployment ran out and we’d have been in danger of falling behind on our mortgage payments, his buddy called him with a job opportunity… on the oil rigs… 1,000 miles away in ND… working on the hardest job he’s ever done in his life while being outside in -30 below weather.
Um, yeah. Not the most enticing job offer, but at our house you’d have thought it was Christmas morning. Halleluia – there is work!!!
We debated for all of an hour about whether he’d go or not, and when we read the numbers on the bottom line and knew it was the only way, C told me to please not worry about him, but he was going to do what needed to be done, and just a couple of days later, he was on a plane up to the cold, cold north.
I am so stinkin’ proud of him.
Right now is a very trying time in our marriage. It’s hard to be apart for 16 days at a time. It’s hard to still be struggling with the TTC. It’s hard to feel stressed about the abundance of bills & lack of job opportunities other hard decisions. BUT.
Right now is a wonderful time in our marriage. It’s a wonderful time to remind us to truly appreciate every moment we have together when he’s back from a hitch for 12 days. It’s a wonderful time for me to have the flexibility for doctor’s appointments and moving forward with our TTC goal. It’s a wonderful time to get back to basics and realize what we really need to be happy in life and cut out the extra.
I married a man with a heart of gold, and he is going to make the best father EVER. I truly believe that. I’m so thankful to have found you Char.
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| Chillin’ with our nephew over the holidays. True love. 🙂 |