I know we just got back from Disney World and you might be expecting a post about that. I do plan to write about our trip, hopefully later this week or early next week but while we were gone Father's Day came so first I wanted to do a post related to that.
The thing that sparked my thoughts for this post actually happened on our trip. Due to various circumstances (all planned) we spent our last night away from home in a hotel in Georgia and found ourselves in the position of having to get Tyler to go to sleep on a bed with us in it. The plan was that we would get him to sleep on our bed and then move him to the bed the other two kids were on. (He had spent all the other nights of our trip in a Pack 'N Play.) Once we were ready for the kids to go to sleep and the older two were settled in, I laid down on our bed with Tyler and had my arm around him in an effort to get him to go to sleep. He fought and cried and wrestled with me and just in general did not want to lay there and go to sleep. He was pretty strung out anyway from being in the car for a few hours and finally being free again but it was late so I knew he was tired too. He started asking for his daddy who was sitting at the foot of the bed watching ESPN (quietly). After listening to me struggle with Tyler for a few minutes and hearing him asking for daddy, Paul told me to let him try holding him. So he scooted to the head of the bed and took Tyler onto his lap. Tyler instantly lay his head down on Paul's chest and sat perfectly still. He in fact sat there with very little squirming and no fighting to get up at all until he fell asleep.
As I lay on the bed next to them, I watched and thought about how often this happens. It might not be these exact circumstances where Paul is required to get a child to go to sleep but how often do we just need him, for anything from killing bugs to feeling safe during a storm to making a decision about buying a house or a car or even what to have for dinner. You wouldn't look at my husband and think of a body builder. He doesn't have massive, bulging muscles. But if his inner strength was visible he could compete in any body building competition. (I'm sure he'll enjoy this analogy.) When Momma's arms don't feel safe enough to climb into, my kids can turn to their daddy and he is there, ready and waiting to share his strength with them. When I don't know how to handle a situation with discipline with our kids or with a conflict our child has with a friend, I don't fret and worry and wonder what to do (not much anyway). My first action is to talk to Paul. His ideas and advice are usually what ends up turning into our actions on any given issue in our home.
As I thought of those things I had to wonder if he ever thinks about how much we depend on him. If he does, it never shows. He never acts tired of me coming to him with a problem and never turns our kids away when they need him because he is too tired or too stressed from dealing with the other responsibilities he has. It seems to come fairly easily to him to be there and ready to handle any problem, lift any box, soothe any child to sleep.
I've always thought how strong moms have to be, how flexible and full of ideas to get through any shopping trip or rainy afternoon, and to keep up with housework while shuttling kids to and from activities. But the strength that a dad must have is really so much greater. They have the weight of the family's finances, especially if the mom stays home, they have the final decisions to make and everyone looking to him for direction. Our day is never complete till Daddy walks in the door. The kids are used to him being gone all day but a question I hear repeatedly, without fail, every day is some variation of "When is Daddy coming home?" I am thankful every day that God gave me a husband who's heart is for Him and our family, that his strength is great and founded in the Lord.
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