Times of Refreshing

It's amazing how having something to look forward to can change your whole attitude.

Yesterday I had a nice afternoon with just the baby because the big kids spent time with Grandma Judy and Aunt Stephanie. It was very nice, but by the time I had lunch with Paul and ran three errands, the time was over and we all met up for dinner. The girls stayed at grandma's for the night and we took Nolan and Ruby home with us.

This morning I was very surprised to find myself not excited to see grandma's car pull into the driveway. I absolutely LOVE staying home with my kids and I cherish the time we spend together homeschooling, so why did I not want them back? It's because I rarely get any kind of break. I found myself putting them in front of a movie while I sliced up a ton of peaches to freeze. I usually always have them along side me while I work. When it was time for them to eat lunch I was frustrated at even having to feed them. What was my problem? I started trying to remember when was the last time Paul and I had any marriage time.

Marriage time is a term that was used by a couple leading a marriage seminar called "The Marriage Course" that we went to a few years ago. I highly recommend the Marriage Course if you find a church offering it. They said that every married couple needs to meet for lunch or coffee once a week, a real date once a month, and a weekend trip at LEAST once a year. If your kids are old enough to leave, they suggest week long alone vacations.

So I was thinking about our marriage time. We have had a few dates. We had a very nice date about 6 weeks ago (with Ruby in tow), but overnight stuff has been a long time. It has been over two years since we had a weekend away and that was taking Nolan with us because he was a baby. It's been over three years since we had a whole weekend away without any kids and that was the only time we've had a weekend alone in our entire marriage! When I realized this I felt like I was going to hyperventilate and the walls were closing in.

I immediately sent Paul a text message that said "Need a weekend vacation. Marriage Time Requested". I still felt anxiety-ridden and had not heard back from him so I didn't know if he had even read it. About an hour later I was about ready to hide from the kids when I got a text from Paul that said "Next weekend confirmed". YAY!!

Instantly I was happy with the kids and fixing their hair. I could breathe again! I still have no idea where we are going or who is watching the kids (I'm assuming grandma and grandpa), but I feel refreshed and uplifted just thinking about a whole weekend off! We will take Ruby with us since she's still so young, but she's so good that it's like she's hardly there. If I really felt like I needed to justify taking a weekend vacation, we do have our anniversary this month and Paul's birthday.

Back to slicing peaches for me. I really did get a ton. I bought a lot of the bruised ones from the farmer's market for super cheap. I will have a fully stocked freezer of peaches, blueberries, squash, whole chickens, beef and buffalo.