Sure is nice, isn't it?

Today Jason is taking Jena skiing & tubing. No need for me to get her clothes out, make her breakfast, argue with her over getting dressed, fight with her about fixing her hair, no drive to preschool, no drop off, then another drive to work.

I enjoyed a few extra minutes of sleep. Folded a load of laundry while watching Netflix, and after checking the time, allowed myself to finish the show once I was done with the laundry.

I finished getting ready for work, and when Jena cried because she wanted cuddles with Mommy, I crawled into bed next to her, shoes already on, ready to leave, and held her & talked with her for a few minutes. Then I kissed my family good-bye and headed out the door.

What a blessed morning. Extra sleep, chore done, leisurely watching a show, cuddle time with my daughter... and still early for work? Who could ask for more?

With all that extra activity, but minus having to do any child care this morning, I got to work 30 minutes early.

On the drive, I let my mind wander to my husband, to my male co-workers. No wonder so many of them get to work early. No wonder Jason can roll out of bed & be out the door in 20 minutes. No wonder so many of my male co-workers start the day early. They, too, can roll out of bed and be out the door in no time, as their wives, being SAHMs, can take care of the children for them. It makes a little more sense now, how they seem to do so so very easily.

And I decide, as I'm walking across the parking lot, that if any of them make a remark about me being early (which is sure to happen), I will remind them of how blessed they are.

Before I could even sit down got a comment from one of the men I work with, someone I generally like very much, but who, as I mentioned in a previous post, has a wife who stays home with their children and while he is one of the more sympathetic ones, really doesn't understand the idea of a working mom. And while he is typically very sweet (seriously, he's great & really is one of my favorites), he also can have a bit of a holier-than-though judgemental streak at times.

"Wow! You're here so early I had to check the clock to make sure my morning wasn't slipping away!" he says in that judgemental tone he does so well.
"Well, it's not every day that I have a spouse to handle my child care for me. Sure is nice, isn't it?" I say, smiling sweetly at him.
Silence. He doesn't even respond. And while we usually have friendly banter throughout the day, he hasn't spoken to me since.

I think my point has been made.

I don't know for sure what he's thinking, but his silence tells me he is indeed thinking. And I hope that it's not just thoughts about not judging your co-workers, but I also hope his mind wanders to how much his wife does for him, how much she really does to take care of their children & their home. And a part of me is hoping that he brings her a dozen roses tonight, just because he's had a subtle reminder of how blessed he is by her.