Life After I "Dew"

Today I started seeing the rewards of my behavior come back to me, full circle.  Just as I had hoped it would, just as I knew it could.

I already mentioned that I had been seeing changes in my family since this challenge started.  Nothing major just better behavior, more cooperation, more help, less yelling, less frustration, all good things.  I'd like to take a second to toot my own horn here, "toot toot!".

Today Jimmy was taking an unusually long time to get home from work. I was cooking dinner and everything was set except the garlic bread because it takes only 8 minutes and I wanted it to be piping hot when we ate it.  So as I tried to resist taste testing dinner, Kendall played dinner music {banged on empty coffee cans and pots and pans} and I wondered what he was up to.

I had my back to the door when he came in but I heard Kendall say, "herrya {here ya} go mommy!" and handed me a single rose.  Behind her was my husband with a card in hand and inside was the sweetest message, "I love you so much, I'm sorry I am working so much but I know you understand and I love you for it!  You have been so amazing to me lately and it does not go unnoticed."  And there it was, in black and white.  He has taken notice in the change within me and he appreciates it.

It's just been over a week, that's not that long.  I haven't even made major changes, just simple things like packing lunches and taking on a few extra chores.  Some days, ahem...Sunday, are harder than others but when I really think about it these things don't take a whole lot of effort or time yet the reward for doing them is so great.

I remember when we first got married my mom had gotten me Dr. Laura Schlessinger's book, The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands.  I remembered thinking this was a bunch of mumbo jumbo and totally slanted in the husbands favor.  Well, in a way it was, but it was so much more than that.  It was simple instructions on how to be a good wife and maintain a happy, healthy, long marriage.  She says that men are simple creatures, and they are, and require simple needs.  It's that easy.  She always says that you should be your husbands girlfriend and kids' mom and for a while I would hear that but I wasn't really getting it.

Being a wife and mother have got to be the two most important roles in any woman's life.  Sure we are daughters, sisters, friends, coworkers, volunteers, etc but our first, main priority has to be our families.  I've learned that putting my family, most recently my husband, first gives me such a better feeling than trying to be the best at anything else.  Never before have I felt so rewarded for doing so little {yet so much} for my family.