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Sunday, May 09, 2010

Mother's Day (post written by my husband)

To My Wife

My wife is a great mother. She works hard as the primary wage earner yet still tries to come home with enough energy to spend time with our daughter. She is a great balance to me when it comes to raising Charlotte. She also has the primary thing that mothers need to have when raising a child, a desire to care for them.

Before we started a family, we recognized that she made more money than I did. For us, putting our child in a daycare was not a desirable or practical solution. While she would have loved to take a leave from her work to take care of our child, it was just not an option. My salary alone couldn't sustain us. The most logical solution, from a monetary standpoint, was for me to reduce the hours I worked to just the weekend and have her work during the week. As a new mother, she wants to be with her child. For the past two years, Monday through Friday she only has had an hour or two in the morning before she goes to work and the hour or so after she gets home (if she can get home on time) to spend with our daughter. Even wiped out from work she still has energy enough to relieve me of Charlotte for what's left of the evening.

After having spent a day with my daughter, I sometimes feel she needs more discipline/manners/etc. As I start to rant and rave about how we should teach her to be a better member of society, my darling wife comes over and takes my daughter. With great patience, she deals with her tantrums and screams while changing her diapers or clothes. Our discussions have drawn the line on some things. She has taught me by example that no matter how bad things get, we still have to be patient with our children. If it wasn't for her, my toddler may already be in military school.

My daughter fell against something and started to cry. We've learned a variety of cries since she was born. This was the cry of shock, pain and anguish. I was getting ready for work when my wife brought her to me. I look up and see a little blood on her lip. I immediately go into action. Identify why she is bleeding, console her, and clean her up. I check her mouth and figure out that she just bit her lip. I clean her up and calm her down. When I finally switch back to getting ready to leave, I become aware that my wife is sniffling. She started to cry when she realized what Charlotte had done to herself. By this time our daughter was off onto something else, pain forgotten. It really touched me knowing that my wife was sad enough to cry for no other reason than our child had gotten hurt. This tells me that she doesn't want anything bad to happen to our children because she cares for them. To me, this is the primary trait a mother needs.

No matter how tired she gets, every second with our children is to be treasured. She has the patience and understanding needed to raise a child. She cares for our children and doesn't want them to come to harm. For this reason, I'm glad to be raising children with my wife. I think she is the perfect mother for my children.

Happy Mother’s Day

5 comments:

Julia Ladewski said...

wow. that is awesome! thank you, husband, for taking the time to write such a beautiful beautiful letter to your wife. i, too, am a working mom while my husband stays home so I know exactly where you guys are coming from. As i type this, i hear my son crying, so my motherly duties/instincts are calling. But Happy Mother's Day Rachel. You are amazing!

amanda said...

Well said Hubby!
Happy Mother's Day Rachel.

Alicia said...

That is so sweet! What a great thing that your husband took over and wrote about you and what a great mom you are :) Happy Mother's Day!! :)

Grit said...

A tender and lovely expression to read. Thank you for letting us share your good fortune with your beautiful daughter. And Happy Mother's Day!

crazywildberry said...

Rachel and Mike, Thank you for sharing with us this beautiful tribute. I remember when I was pregnant with my 2nd child and I came to visit with you. There were a few jokes and comments made about Rachel and the type of mother she would be when you decided to extend your family. However, she has made great strides to be a good mother as this tribute shows. It's amazing how much we are willing to change about ourselves to ensure the safety, innocence and happiness of our children.

Happy Mother's Day, Rachel!

(Sorry this comment is being made so late. I tried to add a comment on Sunday or Monday, after it was written, but I messed up and it didn't published. ugh!)