Abbey is playing her first season of soccer. Her team is red and black. They chose the name "FIRECRACKERS!"
She had four practices and then...bam! Tournament!
Her team played three games this weekend. They won the first two, lost the third.
She's having so much fun that she says she's already thinking about signing up again next year. ;)
(She's #9)
I just finished reading this article in the NY Times called Modern Love
Those Aren’t Fighting Words, Dear By Laura A. Munson.
The article is about a woman whose husband came to her one day and told her he didn't love her anymore, he wasn't sure he ever did. She decided she didn't believe him. She stuck it out. She internally decided to give him six months and waited to see what happened. She went about her life with her children, kept setting his place at the dinner table and waited.
And he came back around.
If only more wives (or husbands for that matter) had the strength to do this. I find it interesting that the article was titled modern love... Have we come full circle? Is this idea of love... waiting and continuing to love someone who is being unloveable such a new idea that it is now modern? Has divorce so permeated our society that it is the normal, expected result? How sad...
In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul writes:
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.
What this wife did is the very definition of love. She didn't let her pride get in the way. She didn't let her anger and hurt fester. She didn't hold a grudge. She hoped, she persevered.
I imagine that this must have been one of the most difficult things she had ever done. She must have had moments of horrible pain and frustration. And in no way do I believe that every woman who tries to wait for her husband to work through a tough time will have the same result. Some husbands will still leave. But don't most people stay in a job they hate much longer than six months while they contemplate their options and make a decision. If more people, husbands and wives alike, would give their rocky marriages six months who knows what the definition of Modern Love could be.Fifteen years ago, today, Chad and I were married. Wow! Fifteen years... How the time has passed in the blink of an eye.
This year we are apart. I am at home in Murrieta. He is working in Modesto. But I think that it almost makes sense this year. Hold on while I explain...
You don't make it to fifteen years of marriage without some ups and downs. You don't make it to fifteen years without learning how to be flexible. You don't make it to fifteen years without learning that marriage takes work and just because you might not be together on the DAY OF, doesn't mean that you don't care anymore. In fact, I believe that it means that we are STILL IN THIS TOGETHER. We are willing to do whatever it takes to make our family work and keep us moving forward. We are willing to make momentary sacrifices for the good of our family. And even though I would love to be on an Hawaiian island with my husband right now, I'll take take just knowing that we both care about the long term. Our marriage, our family, has a future.
I love you, Chad.
All summer long I've been feeling guilty about not updating my blog. After spending some time this morning trying to get our summer down on paper, I realize that I've hardly had time to breathe, let alone try to blog...
Here's a little update on what we've been up to this summer...
Started off the summer by painting the shutters and the front door. I painted them a dark espresso brown.
BEFORE:
AFTER:
...Much better!
Emily's friend Elizabeth came from Modesto for a visit. She flew down and we drove her back home.
We visited some of our friends in Modesto. We stayed a few days with the Villanueva's and then stayed with the Proms.
Got to have coffee with some friends that I haven't seen in a few years...
The girls all got to go spend many nights with their friends.
FATHER'S DAY!
We went bowling with the Proms for Father's Day.
