Goodbye For a Week, My Love

I psych myself up to have bravery today when Per leaves at 1:00PM to drive to the airport. He's traveled ever since we've been married so I'm used to him being gone but he's always home on the weekends. When he travels internationally he's always gone over the weekend. The next couple of months will be busy for him as he goes for a week to China, home for a week and a half, then goes for a week to Dubai, home for a week and a half, then goes for a week to Japan, home for four days, then goes to his home office in NC.

He's leaving today but I look forward to talking to him on Skype when he goes to another country. He'll be home soon but when he travels to a foreign land we have the next best thing - video chat.

I'm happy for him that he provides a valuable thing to his company. I'm glad that what he does makes him happy. I'm thankful that his job provides for our family. In this day and age, I'm thankful that he has a job! I love him and wish him safe travels.

My Family Makes Me Happy

I love my family, being a mom, and being a wife. Family life isn't always roses but when I step back and look at the big picture of what a family means - love, care, fun, togetherness - I'm thankful to have them in my life.

I know that some people's family is not the way they want. My heart goes out to them and I hope they find peace. I'm just thinking about my family today and want to say that I love them!

My Opportunity to be Brave

Whenever something might upset the other person it's best to distract them then do it quickly. For example:

• When ripping off a Band-Aid, first think of something nice then, while thinking of it, rip it off as fast as possible.
• When giving a child a shot, have someone say, "Look at me!" then give 'em the shot as fast as possible and say, "All done! That wasn't so bad now was it?! You were brave!"
• When a parent drops their child off somewhere and the child starts crying the teacher diverts their attention to something else so the parent can leave.

Per has traveled our entire married life. This has been no big deal to me because I've always been at work. Now that I don't work and am home all the time I miss him when he leaves. My logical mind says, "If he were home he'd be doing his own thing." True. But my emotional mind says, "Yes, but at least he'd be home."

I'm fine during the day because I always have something to do. It's at night (when we hang out) that I distract myself by watching or reading something good. Here's me distracting myself: I'm fine. I'm brave. I can handle anything that comes my way. If the cowardly lion in The Wizard of Oz can have courage I can too.

My Family is Awesome!

Don't most people say their family is awesome? Yes. Well add me to the list. I love my family (Per, Bryan, Kimbra, Andrew) with all my heart. Here's my philosophical side showing: Maybe the reason we're born into families is to feel love.

Per's wants the happiness of his family. He's like a golden retriever - loyal, patient, happy to see us, and our best friend. He knows so much and happily imparts what he knows (I'm glad, because I've learned a lot from him.) He gives 100% to whatever he does, and I appreciate that because I know he'll never cut corners.

Bryan has a lot of courage. He takes action to get what he wants. He's smart logically and emotionally - he reads people and knows what they might be feeling and thinking - then he says something to help them.

Kimbra is a kind and positive person. She sees the best in situations and is the perfect wife for Bryan. It seems like they were meant to be because they have so much in common! I'm not used to having another girl in my family but she's a person that's easy to know.

Andrew sees things through to the end. He knows what he wants and goes after it. He's a good listener and gives great advice. He's the kind of friend who brings out the best in people. His positive attitude has reminded me to look on the bright side when sometimes I don't.

My family is great because of who they are, not because of what they do. If they did nothing they'd still be great to me.

I Love My Husband

If I didnt have a chonic illness I could manage to do 75% of the things that needed to be done; but I would need someone else to do the other 25%. My husband makes it 100%. He makes up for what I lack. He's logical, good with money and athletic. I need him and he needs me.

I notice things that he doesn't and make things look pretty. He's functional and I'm visual. As a single person, his house would run but it wouldn't look as nice as our's :)

He could do 75% too, but I make up for the things he lacks. For example, I have a kind of compassion that he doesn't. He's nice to people, but he's also honest and could hurt feelings. I say "don't say that, say this" when thinking something could be said better. 

He's logical and I'm emotional. He makes things work and I make them look good. We're different but we have things in common too. For example: we like things to smell nice; take the initiative to get things done; have similar humor; and strive to be the best at what we do.

I've learned a lot from him. I handle money better, don't give in to the people I once did, and no longer apologize for myself. I also believe he's learned from me. I'm glad he's in my life and when I say he's made me a better person, the above explains some things. I love him.