I still love him

Okay, I have to admit that it took me a few days to RE-commit to writing this post for my hubby. Because I haven't felt like singing his praises lately. But after last night I decided I DID want to tell everyone about him. NOOOO...he did not "spoil" me rotten on Valentine's Day. In fact, it was just the opposite.
Settle in and let me tell you WHY I did not want to sing his praises. As you read earlier, the started went out in my van (cost $100.00). That was not his fault, but an unexpected expense nonetheless. THEN, we had to pay a ticket due to my husband's heavy foot. Total cost $310.00. So unexpected costs this week alone--over $400.00. Before you go off thinking he was driving like some maniac on the road, let me just tell you that he also got a ticket for failure to signal. That alone was over $100.00. So let me warn you--MAKE SURE YOU ALWAYS USE YOUR BLINKER!
Thus, that is the reason why I was not "spoiled" for Valentines Day--there was no expendable cash to do so. And I am not one to expect/demand gifts. And honestly, he has bought me so much jewelry I need a bigger jewelry box. So I am okay with not getting anything, but AT LEAST ACKNOWLEDGE THE DAY! Buy a $.99 card--make a card--something. However, Chris is of the opinion that if he can't make my gifts grand he shouldn't make them at all. Yet some of my most precious memories cost very little if nothing at all.
Chris is an amazing man. And I am quite lucky. The weather was literally below freezing the other night when he fixed the starter, and he had to fix it from underneath the van so he was on the freezing ground for almost 4 hours of that time. Then, about a year ago the company he was working for was experiencing pains from some bad business decisions and as a result were looking to down size. We NEVER expected it to be the most experienced manager they let go, but it was--and they did it literally two weeks before Christmas. This happened on a Saturday, he had a job Monday morning. Chris is a restaurant manager. He has 16 years experience in the restaurant industry. He has helped open 5 different concepts from the ground up. So he's good at what he does. But when this particular restaurant let him go, he went to a friend and asked his friend if he could simply be a fry cook. His friend agreed. See, to Chris the survival of his family was more important than his pride. Can you imagine going from a principal ship to a janitorial position in a school? Or from C.E.O. to mail room clerk? That was what his move was like. Even though he was making 1/3 his salary as a manager, I was so proud of him during that time.
Yet there are the everyday things that touch me as well. I am a stay at home mom and while some people talk about how easy that must be, there are days it is difficult. I tell Chris often, "you get to leave your job when you step out of the building. I am at work 24/7." Therefore, there are days when I haven't gotten dinner done and I am about to pull out my hair. The best the boys get is chicken nuggets and macaroni. And Chris will come in after a 10 hour shift and gladly eat the meal with us. Or there's the fact that he has to dig through the basket of laundry to find clean socks. Then there is his amazing ability to work on a major project (like the starter) and have Mark, our 10 year old, out there beside him asking a million questions. I could not do that. I would tell Mark to go inside. But he allows Mark to participate. And believe it or not Mark looks forward to oil change time. Oh, and he can't say no to Noah. If it 10 pm and he is off to get bread for the boys lunch tomorrow all Noah has to do is look sad enough and Chris takes him in his Nemo pj's and slipper to buy the bread. And Matthew, when Matthew was experiencing all his troubles at school he was ready to cut out ALL extras to afford the help our little boy needed. And of course there is my two-year-old niece and three-year-old nephew (from my sister). They come from a single parent home, and he takes them in here like one of his own. He loves my niece to pieces and ONLY SHE can get away with calling him Kissy. He has even suggested we take them with us on vacation--to places they may not otherwise get to see. Can you say man of the year? I love him completely, and can honestly say that I love him more today than I did when we were married.
But don't think that things have been perfect for us. Our marriage has weathered many storms. At one point we were even considering separation. But God would not release us from this marriage. And I am so glad He didn't. I would have lost my best friend. And he is my best friend--he's the one I cry to when loved ones hurt me, yell at when I can not stand another minute with his offspring, vent to when I feel unappreciated, and run to when I need shelter from the world. And even when I can't make him understand what is wrong he still loves me. That is why I ask the Lord everyday to turn me into the kind of wife he deserves. It is through Chris that I have been best able to understand the amazing love of Christ--after all he shows me that kind of love everyday.