Thank You Greg!

Admit it moms, we've all been there. I'm talking about stress. Greg and I have talked several times that since shortly after we married, we have been hit with one stress after another. Job layoffs and lousy bosses, family health issues and family conflicts, miscarriages and pregnancies, dealing with the aftermath of 9/11 while living 4 miles from the Pentagon, and of course picking up everything and moving to South Carolina with 6 weeks notice while 5 months pregnant. And those are just some of the stresses we've encountered!

I am a stay-at-home-mom to two wonderful little boys. It's a 24 hour a day job (except for the 8 hours sleeping each night!). There are no sick days, no vacations, and no personal days. Goodness, half the time I have to go to the bathroom with an audience! I am lucky that Greg is a big help with the boys. He encourages me to get out on Saturday mornings for a couple hours alone, and eagerly watches the boys so I can go to an occasional mom's night out.

But in the nearly 3 years that I've been a mom, I've only had one night away from the kids. That night was when Greg and I flew down to Greenville from DC to buy a house. Of course I was pregnant with Matthew at the time, and it was a pretty crazy weekend -- flying down Saturday morning, house-hunting, writing a contract, and flying back Sunday afternoon. Hardly a relaxing weekend getaway.

So this past week, Greg said to me, "I am arranging something, and I don't want any argument about it." Then he told me that he was making me reservations at a hotel for the weekend... me alone. He would watch the kids, and I would have a weekend just to myself.

Greg and I arranged to meet at the hotel when he got off work on Friday. I would bring the boys, we'd all have dinner, and then he'd take the boys home. I arrived at the hotel with the boys and checked in, and to my surprise, there was a beautiful arrangement of flowers waiting for me, from my boys. We got up to the room and were all ready to head down and meet Greg when the power went out. So much for dining at the hotel!

Anyway, the power was back on when we returned from dinner, and I set my sights on relaxing. After an uninterruped night sleep, I went shopping without kids! Then I visited the Greenville Museum of Art. I must admit, I am still a big fan of impressionism, and not at all a fan of modern art! I also went to the main downtown library for the first time. It is amazing! It even has a coffee bar!

I still have about 18 hours of my vacation remaining. I've already picked up little gifts for Michael and Matthew. Just like how Greg brings them back little gifts when he goes on business trips. As I was looking for their gifts, I was also trying to think of a nice gift to get for Greg. It takes a pretty darn goody hubby to set up a weekend like this to give his wife a little break. But I couldn't think of anything to buy that would really show him how much I appreciate his efforts.

Thus, this blog posting. It is one thing for me to go home and tell Greg how much I appreciated the weekend. But it is another thing for me to tell the world. (Okay, maybe not the world, but at least that part of the world who will read this blog!)

Thank you Greg for giving me a nice weekend vacation, and for being a great husband and daddy every day of the year. Love you lots....