Hi ho, hi ho

... it's off to work he goes...

Yes, after 14 months my husband has started back to work. (For those of you that don't know, he fell off a roof at work and broke his back) For all the worry that came with his fall, we had found, after many months of wiggling and healing, a comfortable routine. He'd pack lunches for the kids, I'd take them to school. I'd do the morning chores, he'd do the evening ones. I could practice yoga everyday, he'd play guitar. I'd get my sewing done and work on business things, he'd be the stay at home dad. And, the best part of him being home, I didn't have to cook dinner ever (well 5 times, maybe, and I know how spoiled that makes me!).

While I wouldn't want anything like this to happen again, or to anyone else, it has had it's blessings. My husband and I both have new respect for each other and our roles in our family. It's been an eyeopener for my husband to see what goes on all day at home. Just what it takes to keep our household running: the work, the energy, the patience. And he liked it! And as I ramped up my business to try to replace his lost income, it was revealed to me just what it meant to be the breadwinner of the family: the work, the long days, the stress of being the sole earner. And I liked it!

But the biggest winners here were the kids. My husband worked 6 days/week prior to being hurt and was gone before the kids woke up and returned at dinner time. Now Daddy was home all the time! He was there to have snacks after school, take them to the doctor's, play outside and build lego. All the time! Biker became Daddy's shadow and followed him everywhere. I re-learned how to speak in complete sentences and have adult conversations.

Now he's working all day. I'm back to juggling time at the sewing machine and with my kids, the house is getting dirty, there's laundry to put away, kids to play with, groceries to be gotten, sibling battles to mediate, packages to be mailed, what's for dinner? But then there is that one glorious part of the day: the kids are snacked out, playing outside, happily engaged in childhood. No one needs me. So I can have my coffee and sit for a bit of chin wag.... but someone's missing.