Recently I blogged about when hubby and I first got married. That was almost 25 years ago and only 75 days after we met. When we got married way back then, he had a 2 1/2 year old son who quickly held a huge part of my heart and still does today. By the time we had been married a year and a half our second son was born. The day before our third anniversary our third son was born. (Yes, the theme song to "My Three Sons" was hummed regularly at our home.) That little house purchased in the "Buy a House, Get a Spouse" blog was bursting at the seams so we decided to buy a larger house. I was a stay at home mom who loved her little boys dearly. One was in school and the toddlers who were 17 months 9 days and 31 minutes apart in age were best buddies. We left our cute little house with updated carpet and decor for a house that had a mixture of orange shag carpet, carpet that looked like chicken noodle soup, red and black carpet in one bathroom and the kitchen had that 70s style kitchen carpet. Not much to look at but we could spread out a little.
That spreading out didn't last too long though because I got the itch for another baby. Son number 4 was born less than a year and a half after we moved into our new house. Now things were not always perfect. In fact they seldom were. I was lonely! My husband had to work two full time jobs to make ends meet. Dealing with headstrong boys, although I loved them with all my heart, took it's toll on me. But a surprise blessing was on it's way. Or should I say her way! After four boys, we had a baby girl! We had been married just over seven years and had five kids! Hubby was stressed about finances. I was lonely, depressed and confused that it wasn't like I thought it would be. Amazing kids. A husband who loved me. But something was wrong.
I usually try to write about upbeat things. And I will in another paragraph or two. But to get to that, we have to go thru this. My husband left and divorced me. My heart was absolutely broken. Our kids hearts were broken. My husband was confused and didn't know what to do.
That year and a half we were apart was very interesting. My husband would come visit us. The kids never went with him for more than a few hours. And he would even come see me after they were asleep. He regularly told me he had always loved me. At this point I am reminded of Proverbs 14:4, "Where no oxen is the manger is clean. But much increase comes thru the strength of the ox". Literal meaning: You've got to wade thru the manure to get to the milk. We were wading in manure.
That barnyard walk was deep and disgusting at times. Other times my husband's love for us was very evident and we dined on sweet milk without even having to wear our boots for the manure. I remember him saying one evening before the divorce (I hate that word and the Bible says God hates divorce so I can hate the word if I want) that "that won't happen until we get back together". We weren't even the 'd' word yet and he was already planning on us getting back together. Didn't make sense to me. Still doesn't.
But get back together we did. On March 3, 2001 once again on a sofa, my husband proposed to me. I don't know what it is about sofas. Maybe he thinks they are romantic. Maybe he's comfortable on a sofa. Whatever the reason, I was so happy he asked me to marry him again! Now if you ask him the story, he will tell you I proposed both times. But don't believe him. It's not true!
The next week we told the kids and they were thrilled! Our youngest son was in kindergarten and told a substitute teacher that his mom and dad were getting married again and he was going to carry the rings on a pillow if he could. We had no idea he even knew about that but were so glad she told us what he had said. We started trying to decide on a date. We knew we wanted it to be soon. Hubby, or soon to be hubby again, suggested Good Friday. Good Friday that year just happened to be April 13th. While I am not superstitious, I knew others who were and would think we were jinxed from the beginning. I prayed about it and waited for an answer.
Back then we had a fun routine while driving to school each morning. We would put on the Armor of God and quote scripture. Each child would quote a verse he or she had memorized. Usually the kids would excitedly quote scripture after scripture, leaving me no time to say even one. But one particular morning, and I remember exactly where we were when it happened, they all got finished and left me the opportunity to quote one of my own. Oh no! I wasn't prepared for this. Think fast! "I can do all things thru Christ Who gives me strength! Philippians 4:13" I shouted! Oh my......really????? Philippians 4:13. 4/13. That was the date! I asked "God was that You?" After dropping our daughter off at the babysitter's, I went to work. Walking in the door, I turned on the radio. There was Steven Curtis Chapman singing "I can do all things thru Christ Who gives me strength......." Ok. Yes. That was definitely God.
The wedding was planned for late morning on 4/13/01 at a cute little wedding cottage. Outfits were bought. Hubby was working extra shifts so we seldom saw him. And of course all the planning was left up to me but that was ok since we had eloped the first time. I shopped for new rings but hubby just couldn't see spending a lot of money on jewelry since we already had rings. So dressed in our wedding duds, we headed for the courthouse to get our license. An unusual sight I suppose. But we were all so happy!
Unfortunately hubby didn't find his original ring until long after we were reunited, so we got to get new rings after all! Ummmm......well we went to a pawn shop. With a van full of kids right outside the door, we looked at the gold bands. Of course George Jones and Tammy Wynette's "Golden Ring" was playing in our minds. We each chose a simple gold band, had them fitted and headed to the wedding chapel.
"Reunited and it feels so good. Reunited 'cause we understood...there's one perfect fit and sugar this one is it. We both are so excited 'cause we're reunited hey he-ey." The wedding was beautiful! The older boys were a little unsure of their place in the ceremony. Our youngest son got to fulfill his dream of carrying the rings on the pillow. Our little girl was the flower girl. And unlike our first wedding, we have tons of pictures and even a video!
While it hasn't been an easy 13 years, God has proved over and over that "I can do all things thru Christ who gives me strength".
That spreading out didn't last too long though because I got the itch for another baby. Son number 4 was born less than a year and a half after we moved into our new house. Now things were not always perfect. In fact they seldom were. I was lonely! My husband had to work two full time jobs to make ends meet. Dealing with headstrong boys, although I loved them with all my heart, took it's toll on me. But a surprise blessing was on it's way. Or should I say her way! After four boys, we had a baby girl! We had been married just over seven years and had five kids! Hubby was stressed about finances. I was lonely, depressed and confused that it wasn't like I thought it would be. Amazing kids. A husband who loved me. But something was wrong.
I usually try to write about upbeat things. And I will in another paragraph or two. But to get to that, we have to go thru this. My husband left and divorced me. My heart was absolutely broken. Our kids hearts were broken. My husband was confused and didn't know what to do.
That year and a half we were apart was very interesting. My husband would come visit us. The kids never went with him for more than a few hours. And he would even come see me after they were asleep. He regularly told me he had always loved me. At this point I am reminded of Proverbs 14:4, "Where no oxen is the manger is clean. But much increase comes thru the strength of the ox". Literal meaning: You've got to wade thru the manure to get to the milk. We were wading in manure.
That barnyard walk was deep and disgusting at times. Other times my husband's love for us was very evident and we dined on sweet milk without even having to wear our boots for the manure. I remember him saying one evening before the divorce (I hate that word and the Bible says God hates divorce so I can hate the word if I want) that "that won't happen until we get back together". We weren't even the 'd' word yet and he was already planning on us getting back together. Didn't make sense to me. Still doesn't.
But get back together we did. On March 3, 2001 once again on a sofa, my husband proposed to me. I don't know what it is about sofas. Maybe he thinks they are romantic. Maybe he's comfortable on a sofa. Whatever the reason, I was so happy he asked me to marry him again! Now if you ask him the story, he will tell you I proposed both times. But don't believe him. It's not true!
The next week we told the kids and they were thrilled! Our youngest son was in kindergarten and told a substitute teacher that his mom and dad were getting married again and he was going to carry the rings on a pillow if he could. We had no idea he even knew about that but were so glad she told us what he had said. We started trying to decide on a date. We knew we wanted it to be soon. Hubby, or soon to be hubby again, suggested Good Friday. Good Friday that year just happened to be April 13th. While I am not superstitious, I knew others who were and would think we were jinxed from the beginning. I prayed about it and waited for an answer.
Back then we had a fun routine while driving to school each morning. We would put on the Armor of God and quote scripture. Each child would quote a verse he or she had memorized. Usually the kids would excitedly quote scripture after scripture, leaving me no time to say even one. But one particular morning, and I remember exactly where we were when it happened, they all got finished and left me the opportunity to quote one of my own. Oh no! I wasn't prepared for this. Think fast! "I can do all things thru Christ Who gives me strength! Philippians 4:13" I shouted! Oh my......really????? Philippians 4:13. 4/13. That was the date! I asked "God was that You?" After dropping our daughter off at the babysitter's, I went to work. Walking in the door, I turned on the radio. There was Steven Curtis Chapman singing "I can do all things thru Christ Who gives me strength......." Ok. Yes. That was definitely God.
The wedding was planned for late morning on 4/13/01 at a cute little wedding cottage. Outfits were bought. Hubby was working extra shifts so we seldom saw him. And of course all the planning was left up to me but that was ok since we had eloped the first time. I shopped for new rings but hubby just couldn't see spending a lot of money on jewelry since we already had rings. So dressed in our wedding duds, we headed for the courthouse to get our license. An unusual sight I suppose. But we were all so happy!
Unfortunately hubby didn't find his original ring until long after we were reunited, so we got to get new rings after all! Ummmm......well we went to a pawn shop. With a van full of kids right outside the door, we looked at the gold bands. Of course George Jones and Tammy Wynette's "Golden Ring" was playing in our minds. We each chose a simple gold band, had them fitted and headed to the wedding chapel.
"Reunited and it feels so good. Reunited 'cause we understood...there's one perfect fit and sugar this one is it. We both are so excited 'cause we're reunited hey he-ey." The wedding was beautiful! The older boys were a little unsure of their place in the ceremony. Our youngest son got to fulfill his dream of carrying the rings on the pillow. Our little girl was the flower girl. And unlike our first wedding, we have tons of pictures and even a video!
While it hasn't been an easy 13 years, God has proved over and over that "I can do all things thru Christ who gives me strength".
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