The Point of It All.

Initially as I began to write this, I wasn't even sure what it would be about. There are so many things swirling around my brain lately, that to choose one I thought would prove difficult. We've moved, my husband started a new job, our lives are drastically different, etc... A plethora of good writing/venting material to say the least. As I sat here, staring at the blank screen, it dawned on me...

The only reason that any of those things have happened...

The only reason the multitude of changes has been such an easy transition...

The only reason I am able to bear the long hours (days) alone...

The only reason I haven't allowed my children to drive me absolutely mad yet...

That reason? My husband.

Simply put, my marriage as a whole.

I'll go ahead and brag a little bit, saying I do believe I found myself a truly genuine man. Some one who works harder than any one I know, with nary a complaint. Who is one of the most amazing fathers I have ever seen in action, dropping to the floor the instant he gets home from a 12-hour shift, just to wrestle with his sons. Who (almost) never bites back, when his wife is in a "sassy" mood, but instead understands that she has had just as hectic of a day as he has. A man who I could write endlessly about.

This is the man I knew I was marrying 5 1/2 years ago. I knew it the moment I laid eyes on him the day we met. I could tell that no matter what happened, what we would go through, that this man would always show up. All too often, people in relationships run when things get hard. They hide instead of trusting their partner with their opinions, their emotions. I knew that he would never do that. That girl that first met him 7 years ago had found a miracle in him. A miracle that I thank God for every day.

What each of us brings to the marriage table, is what makes all of these new stresses so much easier to bear. It's what allows me to keep in perspective the late nights at work, the meetings on his days off, the fact that sometimes those days off are 8-9 days apart. I remind myself that we asked for this opportunity, waited entirely too long for it. That even when I'm having rough days at home, he would much rather be there with me, elbow-deep in diaper duty. And in those moments where I feel as though there isn't much more I can handle, I remember he's finally in a place that he deserves. A place where he has finally had the opportunity to shine, to show people what he is truly capable of. To show them the hard-working man that so many other people foolishly overlooked. When I remind myself of that, I remind myself that it's my husbands turn and he makes me so proud that all of the other worries I have pale in comparison.

Many friends of mine have come to me for marriage advice in the past. I am almost always surprised when they do, because no marriage is perfect and for them to see something in ours that would make them comfortable enough to ask for advice, is humbling. The biggest thing that I always come back to when I'm overwhelmed, stressed, defeated, etc... is that no matter what it is, I'll be okay as long as I have the covenant I made with my husband to fall back on. That's what marriage is. It's the knowing that even though it won't always be easy, you can trust in the fact that your partner is willing to work just as hard as you will to fix the issues. That you can find in them someone who strives to make what you have together better, stronger, than it was the day before. That they are the person who inspires you to be more. Not only for them or for your marriage, but for yourself. That's the big one. I've met many wonderful men in my life, had very serious relationships with some of them. Not a one of them worked out. Not because they weren't good people, not because I didn't care for them, but because we didn't inspire each other to become better people.

I guess that's what this post boils down to...

That yes, I have awesome new things to talk about...
That yes, I have a multitude of mommy stress to discuss...
That yes, I have had some womanhood issues lately...

But that none of it, the good or the bad, the easy or the hard, is the point.

The fact that the good is beyond-words good...
That the hard is never-before-experienced hard...
That fact that there is this jumble of new everything and I haven't fainted from elation or gone entirely bonkers?

That's because of my husband, my marriage.

And that, my friends, is the point of it all.