Reconnecting

A little way I try to express my love to my wandering parakeet, is our late night dinners.  One thing I have learned, after many years as the wife to a traveling man, is the importance of reconnecting after a business trip.  Be it for a day or a week, the time spent apart creates a gap that must be rejoined.  Allen has at least one day out of town each week so this has become an especially important ritual for us.

The way we have come to do this is a quiet supper, just the two of us.  I feed the children and put them down as usual and then wait to eat with Allen when he returns.  Flexibility is important here, as traffic and airlines and meetings never seem to stick with the plan.

Sometimes, I save a couple of plates from whatever I fixed for the children.  Sometimes, I make an antipasto platter with some sparkling cider.  Other times, Allen might pick up a little something on the way home.  Or if it will be too late to go without dinner, we might enjoy some dessert and coffee.

Depending on the season, we may sit on the deck, curl up on the couch in front of a video or enjoy the warmth of the fire.

Friday night, after some time in Dallas, Allen got in near 11.  Skipping lunch, I couldn't miss dinner, too, so I ate with the children earlier.  Knowing I had a busy week,  and guessing how exhausted I would be, Allen stopped and picked up supper for us, at our favorite restaurant.  The manager, whom we've come to know, saw him waiting for his order at the hostess desk and inquired where I was.  After Allen explained that he had been out of town and had not even returned home yet, Luis ran to the kitchen and returned with a dessert for us to share.

What a pleasant time we had sitting by the fire and chit chatting well into the morning hours while Allen ate with gusto and I nibbled at my Key Lime Pie.  It doesn't sound like much, but these little moments together are the string that ties hearts together.  And it is just one more little way to say, "I Love You." 

And Now For Something A Little Different

Ok... I've ignored this blog far too long. And since I can't post on my other blog, due to unresolved technical errors, it seems like a good time to get my rear in gear.  If anyone understands the Piccasa issue, do drop me an email.

In the meantime, for those who read our family blog, you know that my life has been a bit "chaotic" these last few months, both figuratively and literally.  Which is why this blog has more than been ignored.  With resolve to get back at it, the catch is that our basement is still turned upside down.  It is hard to find anything at this time, including my 365 Ways to Say I Love You book. 

This whole year has turned into the year for doing things I wouldn't normally do.  For doing things different.  A year for changing plans.

So what a great time to shake things up here a bit.  I hope you agree... whoever you are out there who might actually read this some day.

I thought what I would do, for now anyway, is instead of writing Jani's ideas, I will write personal ideas that I try to incorporate into our days, nights and very busy life to make sure my true love always knows he's still the apple of my eye.

With Allen away so often, keeping in touch with each other is important to keeping our marriage healthy.  Attempting to keep as close as possible to a regular routine, despite coming and going and many fluctuations in our regular schedule, is important to keeping our family healthy.

One of the most important parts of our marriage is our morning prayer and Bible study time.  At six am our alarm goes off each day.  When Allen is here, before we get out of bed or even turn the lights on, our day starts in prayer together.    After that we read the Bible.  Sometimes we read together and sometimes Allen reads aloud to me.  I love to hear him read aloud.

So how do we manage that when Allen is often on the road before six am?  What about weeks like this when he is hopping from state to state?

This morning our alarms went off at 6 am Maryland time and 5 am Texan time.  In our separate states, we took time to pray for our family, church, each other and those other issues the Lord has laid on our joint heart.  We may not be able to snuggle in prayer but we were still able to go before His throne together.