But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.
My heart ached a little as we pulled into the campground earlier today. It continued as I played with Camdyn in the pool, watched her play in the rocks with her dump truck, and then again as she played on the playground. I know you are thinking, "Why in the world would such a fun filled day make her sad?"
My heart ached but not for myself. It ached for my husband. Yet another holiday he had to work and not be able to spend time with his family. A lot of men would not be sad about missing out on chasing around a very active three year old, fighting a sea of people in a pool, and rushing home to bathe their child and get things ready for the next day. My husband does. He misses all of it. He wants to be home when we are home and wants to share the load with me.
Each night when he comes in at 8, 9, or 10 p.m. from work, he pulls his plate of food from the microwave, sits sometimes alone while he eats and then if I am still awake, sits and talks to me in the few minutes I have before I have to go to bed. Each night, he expresses how much he longs to be home in the evenings. Second shift isn't the "family man" shift. It's the shift that messes up your entire day. It's the shift that allows you 30 minutes in the morning with your child as you get her ready for school and then drop her off. It's the shift that allows you several hours in the morning that you wish you could spend with your child who has to be at school by 9 a.m. It's the shift that allows you to drive down the road every evening and see daddies playing catch and pushing their children on a swing. It's the shift that creates guilt because of missing little league games and dance recitals. It's the shift that always keeps you longing to be home...with your family.
I won't lie. It's been hard at times. Especially when I was doing my graduate work. Working, picking up Camdyn, cleaning, cooking, bathing, etc. is hard when it's just one person in the evenings (I am in awe of you single moms and wives of deployed servicemen.!) I have however, grown accustom to it and we make it work. There is however one thing that keeps me going and that's my husband and his willingness and dedication to provide for our family. With so many people unemployed, you realize you are lucky to even have a job. While not the shift you would like, you have a job and that's the positive. He works to provide for his family. If you ask Camdyn why daddy works however, she will tell you "Daddy works so he can buy me snacks!"
I know I do not tell him enough how much I appreciate what he does. Sometimes I let it go unnoticed, but today as I sat pool side I watched so many fathers playing with their children. On the contrary, I also saw many fathers who were shouting at their children, ignoring their children's many pleas to "please come play with me daddy!", and many who seemed completely unphased by their children even being there. It was in that moment that I stopped at thanked God.
I thanked him for giving me a husband who looks after my needs. I thanked him for giving me a husband that provides for my family, even if it means he spends more time away from us than he would like. I thanked him for my husband's salvation and for his growing leadership as our family joined a new church yesterday. I thanked him most of all for giving me the father of my sweet girl. He is nothing short of amazing as a Daddy. How many daddies do you know that would paint fingernails and toenails, play dress up, and go on endless daddy daughter dates to the park and Mcdonalds for ice cream? He spends quality time every chance he gets with Camdyn and enjoys it to the fullest extent.
Today I am thankful for my husband and what he means to our family. I am thankful God is guiding him as the leader of our home. I am thankful for his contributions and dedication to us. I am thankful for all that makes him who he is.
Help our family to pray that a first shift position could open up at his job in the near future. Having him home with us in the evenings for family time, church, and something as simple as family dinner, is a burden we hope that one day God will see fit to provide for us. Until then, we will make the best of the situation, and spend the moments we have together.
My heart ached but not for myself. It ached for my husband. Yet another holiday he had to work and not be able to spend time with his family. A lot of men would not be sad about missing out on chasing around a very active three year old, fighting a sea of people in a pool, and rushing home to bathe their child and get things ready for the next day. My husband does. He misses all of it. He wants to be home when we are home and wants to share the load with me.
Each night when he comes in at 8, 9, or 10 p.m. from work, he pulls his plate of food from the microwave, sits sometimes alone while he eats and then if I am still awake, sits and talks to me in the few minutes I have before I have to go to bed. Each night, he expresses how much he longs to be home in the evenings. Second shift isn't the "family man" shift. It's the shift that messes up your entire day. It's the shift that allows you 30 minutes in the morning with your child as you get her ready for school and then drop her off. It's the shift that allows you several hours in the morning that you wish you could spend with your child who has to be at school by 9 a.m. It's the shift that allows you to drive down the road every evening and see daddies playing catch and pushing their children on a swing. It's the shift that creates guilt because of missing little league games and dance recitals. It's the shift that always keeps you longing to be home...with your family.
I won't lie. It's been hard at times. Especially when I was doing my graduate work. Working, picking up Camdyn, cleaning, cooking, bathing, etc. is hard when it's just one person in the evenings (I am in awe of you single moms and wives of deployed servicemen.!) I have however, grown accustom to it and we make it work. There is however one thing that keeps me going and that's my husband and his willingness and dedication to provide for our family. With so many people unemployed, you realize you are lucky to even have a job. While not the shift you would like, you have a job and that's the positive. He works to provide for his family. If you ask Camdyn why daddy works however, she will tell you "Daddy works so he can buy me snacks!"
I know I do not tell him enough how much I appreciate what he does. Sometimes I let it go unnoticed, but today as I sat pool side I watched so many fathers playing with their children. On the contrary, I also saw many fathers who were shouting at their children, ignoring their children's many pleas to "please come play with me daddy!", and many who seemed completely unphased by their children even being there. It was in that moment that I stopped at thanked God.
I thanked him for giving me a husband who looks after my needs. I thanked him for giving me a husband that provides for my family, even if it means he spends more time away from us than he would like. I thanked him for my husband's salvation and for his growing leadership as our family joined a new church yesterday. I thanked him most of all for giving me the father of my sweet girl. He is nothing short of amazing as a Daddy. How many daddies do you know that would paint fingernails and toenails, play dress up, and go on endless daddy daughter dates to the park and Mcdonalds for ice cream? He spends quality time every chance he gets with Camdyn and enjoys it to the fullest extent.
Today I am thankful for my husband and what he means to our family. I am thankful God is guiding him as the leader of our home. I am thankful for his contributions and dedication to us. I am thankful for all that makes him who he is.
Help our family to pray that a first shift position could open up at his job in the near future. Having him home with us in the evenings for family time, church, and something as simple as family dinner, is a burden we hope that one day God will see fit to provide for us. Until then, we will make the best of the situation, and spend the moments we have together.