8 Things I Learned About My Home and Family While My Husband Was Away

Recently, my husband, his boss, and his coworker left home for two whole weeks! They went to Phoenix, AZ and Denver, CO to help out his boss's family members with their homes and from the photos, looks like it was a nice long vacation as well! :side eye: Maybe I'm a teeny bit jealous?

It was the longest I have been away from my husband in our nearly seven years of marriage.

Some of the things I learned are meaningful, others not so much.

• I need to be more consistent with disciplinary actions. It was a little tough not having my husband around to back me up so I really had to stand my ground.

• There are more than two things that can go wrong with a toilet. I'll attempt to explain. I have used a plumber when the toilet gets backed up. I have had to hook the chain back up to the flapper valve (I Googled that lol). This time, I had to screw the long skinny metal stick thing into the flapper valve.

• Routines are EVERYTHING. I value routines more now than I did prior to my husband's departure.

Standing in front of one of the homes he worked on.

• My husband supports me. Since I have been getting into so many creative endeavors, I have felt that my husband doesn't support me going back to school or any of my hobbies/side jobs, more specifically my blog. While he was away there was a moment where I had a realization that he has actually supported me in his own way. A few years ago he bought my first mirrorless camera with interchangeable lenses- a white Nikon J1. He bought me photo studio equipment- lighting and a back splash stand. This past December he bought my first DSLR camera. When he's here the kids watch TV with him, giving me a little time to do homework, watch my ratchet shows, or work on my blog. I can tell the kids to "go ask daddy" when I don't feel like doing something, although sometimes he sends them back up to me. When I'm over whelmed I usually yell, "ZACH!" and he steps in to take some pressure off me. Awww, now I feel all sweet and mushy inside.

I think sometimes I can get so caught up in my feelings that I don't always see the bigger picture, so it most definitely helps to have those  reflective moments that show me how blessed I truly am.

Zach and his co-worker.

• Single mothers of multiple children are amazing! The good ones, anyway. I almost lost my mind after about 10 days!

• A drill bit cannot go into an electric screwdriver. I thought all the little screw bits and drill bits fit in the same handheld special battery operated device, but nope! After that was all figured out, I was able to successfully hang shelves above my desk. :-)

• I'm not as lazy as I thought! I got a lot done :-). I just don't like folding clothes.

• My kids don't think I'm a good night cuddler :-( That's what I'm assuming anyway. The kids and I are usually all over my husband at night (kids in our bed on the weekends only!). He's my feet warmer and I love to cuddle up with him. My kids are the same way, they lay on his back. While he was away my two oldest kids (Phoenix & ZJ) only slept with me twice! I didn't even force them to sleep in their own beds, they just did. Gabe slept with me more often. Maybe I'm too skinny for Phoenix & ZJ. They can't lay on me like they do with my husband.

Thanks for reading!

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