Seventeen days till he’s home, but Andy’s back in the US! A step closer! With all of the crazy stuff going on in our world right now, I’m extremely grateful that he is home and safe. It is sad that he isn’t home yet, especially since it is our anniversary, but having him arrive to the US right before our anniversary was a nice gift, none-the-less.
My week has been filled with T-ball, baseball, and dance. Though, Max was kind enough to watch the kids Thursday night so I could go to a Relief Society activity and then a friend’s book club. Then he watched them again Friday night so I could go to a friend’s wedding reception real quick. I’m super grateful for that kid and how much of a help he’s been during Andy’s deployment. Thursday morning I went to Max’s school for his 504 meeting, but just as I got there, a tornado warning hit. They moved me to the cafeteria, but by the time the drill ended, the teachers no longer had time for our meeting, so I took off. Before I took off, his math teacher came up to me and told me that “Max is a genius. I have no problems with him and I’m pretty sure he’s doing great socially as well as academically. He has a really good group of friends.” I replied, “Tripp and Charlie?” He said, “Yes! That’s exactly who it is! They’re great kids. They’re always competing to see who can catch me in my mathematical mistakes.” I replied, “Oh no! I hope he’s respectful when he catches a mistake!” He laughed and said he was and said that he just wished their class was first and not last so they could catch his mistakes before he teaches the other kids the wrong way the whole day.
The other day, Bev was busy poking people’s buttons. I told her, “Bev, your greatest weakness is that you are very skilled at learning what bothers people and doing it (though she may argue this is a strength). Your greatest strength is helping your teacher… and your mom when you feel like it.” Mav piped in, “What’s mine?” I said, “Your greatest weakness is that you never pickup after yourself without reminding. Your greatest strength is your ability to know how people are feeling and sympathize with them.” He wasn’t sure he liked that strength, but I can tell you, it has been a great comfort to me these past nine months. Of course Max and Harvey wanted their assessments too. I told Harvey that his weakness was acting like he was incapable, when he actually was and his strength was bringing joy to those around him. His ability to act incapable actually stems from one of his strengths too, because he is very good at getting people to do what he wants them to. It makes my life a little harder right now, but it’ll serve him well when he’s older. I told Max, “You are incredibly smart and learn really quickly, but your weakness is that you think you already know everything.” He replied, “I get that from dad.” I laughed out loud. When I told Andy the story, he laughed too. It was too true. Andy knows so much, that he can get away with acting like he really does know everything and sometimes, that is annoying, but mostly I’m super blessed that he is so incredibly smart. Either way, I have an amazing family and I feel very blessed.
Andy and I have been married for fifteen years. We have been through some incredible challenges, but have been blessed beyond measure. I feel so grateful that Andy is the one that has been through it all with me. We really balance each other out in so many regards. He has helped me be less judgmental and has taught me how to love better and feel loved by others. He is always building me up and trying to help me let go of my tendency to care what people think. He’s an amazingly hard worker and such a fun dad. We are so excited to add his dynamic back at home.
