Real Life Marriage: Behind Every Standing Woman

"Behind every good man is a good woman," or so the saying goes. Maybe, but I am here to say that I think behind every standing woman, there is someone propping them up. For me, that is my husband.

These past few months have been quite the roller coaster, physically, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually. Pain limited my capabilities and capacities. I grieved lost opportunities, as well as the (hopefully temporary) loss of my sport. I had many, many days, where I just wanted to throw in the towel, quit my physical therapy program, and either sit in a heap and cry, or just go out for a long, long, run knowing I'd break myself again.

Thankfully, my husband talked me out of all of my extreme ideas. I did cry, but he also took me to places like the rose garden and the Mogollon Rim to get my mind of what I couldn't do and onto what I could. He told me he still found me beautiful on days when my clothes didn't fit like they used to and I just felt awful in my body. He reminded me that I had hired experts to help them, and I needed to follow their advice.

It hasn't just been through this injury that my husband has supported me, though. I have an emotionally and mentally taxing job, and he's the one putting dinner on the table most nights. He's often getting our groceries when I feel too spent to retrieve them. He's the one telling me my value after I've been chewed out or berated by yet another person who is dsyregulated. He's the one giving me an out if/when I need to take a break from this line of work.

Women tend me to more emotional than men, and hi, I am that woman. I need my husband's steadiness to keep me grounded. I need his savings on days when the waves of life threaten to undo me. Behind this standing woman is one very strong man. I wouldn't be who I am today without him, and after this summer especially, I'm not sure I'd be standing without him. 

Wide Open Spaces Adventure

Back to the Mogollon Rim for us this weekend! This time it was to the town of Heber/Overgaard, with a side quest to look at some property for sale. (No, we’re not in the market to buy land, but we can dream, right?)

We stopped at the Mogollon Rim Visitor Center. 

This time, we could see the views.

And yes, I found my husband out on a rock outcropping again!

We checked out the property (but not too much since we didn’t want to take the car too far down the gravel road). Lots of scrub brush, some free range cattle, and not too many bigger trees. There were wide open spaces, however. It was quiet, and cool (74 when it was going to be over 100 at home).

We passed through the boardwalk at Heber/Overgaard, but it wasn’t like my husband remembered, more hair salons than cool shops. It was too early for lunch, so we headed back down the hill, narrowly missing all the traffic headed back down the hill from the ASU football scrimmage at Camp T. (We didn’t know that as today, but had both worn maroon ASU shirts. Go figure!)

Maybe this wasn’t our greatest adventure, but it gave us some space. (The drive was about two and a half hours each way.) And sometimes we just need that.

*Spoiler alert: After all that driving, we found out the land we were on was actually US forest land, and not for sale. The maps just didn't take us to the right place!

The Sourdough Report:

Originally, I planned to pack breakfast and lunch for us. Then we decided to eat breakfast at home and get lunch out. In the end, we ended up back home with food I’d prepped: 

Sourdough gozleme and red peppers, cheese sticks, chocolate sourdough brownie bites and ginger soda 

And that’s it! Another Arizona adventure in the books!

Evening Roosevelt Lake Adventure

What do you do when it's nearly 110 degrees outside? Go to the lake! And not just any lake, the largest lake that exists solely within the Arizona state borders: Roosevelt Lake. I truly had no idea how big this lake was, until we drove, and drove, and drove, and still found more water (and that even with water levels being way down).

We set out from home about 3:30 PM and arrived at the lake around 5:00 PM. First, we went to the Roosevelt Bridge overlook. From the overlook, we saw the bridge (the longest of its kind in North America), a wide view of the lake, and plenty of boats! 

From there, we worked our way around to the dam overlook. (Beware, the road is barely wide enough for two cars). The dam is truly immense, and the buildings beneath it sparked our curiosity. We saw what we are pretty sure was a bald eagle land on one of the sandbars behind the dam.

After driving a bit more, we settled on one of the many recreational sites, Cottonwood Cove Picnic Area, for dinner. We looked out over the water, watched a storm roll in, and even spotted a javelina! On the way home, we drove through Miami, Superior, and Gold Canyon, and even caught up to rain storm (or it caught us)!

Could we have done other things with our evening? Sure! But this was a great way to get away, see some new scenery, and reset and refresh before the week starts again.

Curious about the sourdough? Dinner was elevated PBJs (elevated because I made the raspberry chia seed jam, upped the nutrition with Creamy protein peanut butter and put in all on sourdough sandwich bread). 

Weeknight Salt River Adventure

Think Dobbins Lookout is the best place in the Phoenix Metropolis to catch an Arizona sunset? Think again! Try the Salt River!

There are Black Canyon of the Gunnison level rocks and cliffs.

Plenty of places to sit and just be (Of course, we would find my husband out on a ledge.) 

Calm and quiet all around

When my husband told me he wanted to go on a weeknight adventure, I was down. It had already been a long week, and I just wanted to get away. Sourdough zucchini pizza and carrots packed well for dinner in the car, and off we went. We stayed until near dark and then drove home at dusk. I seriously couldn't have asked for a better evening!

Real Life Marriage: We Are Family!

I looked at the name scrawled in black sharpie against the cooler sitting in my parents' garage and thought, "Who is that?" And then I realized, "Oh yeah, that's their last name, my OLD last name." Somewhere between getting married and year six or seven, I actually started seeing myself titled by my married name, and somehow, that made my maiden name seem foreign.

I chose to take my husband's last name when we got married. It is not something all women do, and honestly, it was a bit of a pain. My name change required not only a Social Security alteration, but also a change to my professional licensure (which might have been just as much or more of a pain). Changing was name symbolized new life, however, and that is what I saw myself beginning when I got married, so I made the outward change.

It is not that the name change suddenly made me only a part of my husband's families. I think I am still getting to know them and learning my place in them. It is just that somehow, over the course of marriage, my husband has become my family. He is my home. Thought we are very different, we belong together, and I just cannot see it any other way.

Some people see family as a mom, dad, kids, and relatives. For my husband and I, it is just the two of us, but we are family, nonetheless. We are bonded, a unit, and by God's grace, may man not turn it asunder (King James Version 1987, Matthew 19:6).

Reference:

King James Bible. (1987). Bible gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/King-James-Version-KJV-Bible/

Real Life Marriage: Home

I have had a lot of homes. Having moved many times as a child, I gave the title "home" to numerous structures and dwelling places spread out over multiple states. I called the duplex where my husband I lived when we first got married, "home." Our condo became the first home we purchased together, and after nearly a decade in Arizona, this state feels like home. But home has other definitions, too.

When my parents moved to Texas, part of my heart's home moved with them. Home to me means comfort and security and safety. I know that I need to ultimately find those in the Lord, but there is something about the familiar of home that brings that early sense of knowing and being known: our couch, our shower, our sheets and towels, our comfortable, well worn bed. Every home has its quirks, but when it is your home, you know them, and sometimes the quirks become almost endearing.

There is something about marriage, about a spouse, that becomes a home, too. That has happened for me over the past seven years as my husband has become not only my friend, partner, and lover; but also my confidant, adventure partner, and general holder-upper.

My husband is my person. He has quirks, sure, but I probably have more. I am far from truly knowing him, but there is a comfort, a familiarity, a trustworthiness, a security that I have with him and not with anyone else. I think it's supposed to be this way. We're in life together. Through marriage, God made us need each other. He made us better together. He enabled us to build a home together.

I'm not alone in coming to see home as with my husband. Shauna Niequist (2020) writes of her husband Aaron, “Wherever we are in the world, when I’m with you, I’m home.” I couldn't say it better. For now, Arizona is our home, but someday, it might not be, and that's okay. Sure, parts of my heart are in other places, as long as my people are in other places, but the biggest piece of my heart is always with my husband. He is home.

Reference:

Niequist, S. (2020, August 25). 19 years. In our vows, 19 years ago, I said to Aaron, “Wherever we are in the world, when I’m. [Image attached] [Status update]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/sniequist/posts/3830985810251906/

Real Life Marriage: Far From Perfect

Seven. The number of perfection. That's how many years we've been married, but let me tell you, our marriage is far from perfect. We still miscommunicate on an almost daily basis. We hurt each other's feelings. We don't understand each other. We frustrate one another. But by God's grace, we're growing.

We're growing in communication. We're understanding each other maybe just a bit better. We're missing each other in smaller ways, instead of in bigger ways. We're working as a team a little more smoothly. We're recovering from our mishaps a little bit faster.

We worked as a team this past month when my brother got married. I was the impromptu wedding coordinator, and my husband didn't miss a step. I'm not always the best at asking for what I need, but this time, when He asked, I told him. He didn't complain or hem and haw. He just did it. He stepped in where he could and out where he couldn't. I had to believe that our marriage was strong enough to withstand any miscommunications that might be had, as my focus was to bless my brother and sister-in-law on their special day. My husband understood the mission.

Seven years ago, this would not have happened. We didn't understand each other well enough. He didn't know my family well enough. I didn't know him well enough, nor he me. I probably didn't trust him like I should, and I am not sure he knew how to help me like I needed. This time, by God's grace, we were on the same page, and on the same team.

The wedding went off with a few minor mishaps, and left behind our marriage intact, and me more grateful for it. Our marriage is far from perfect, but some days, like this one, when things click, I'm many times reminded that marriage is a gift, when it works, and when we are working at making it work, too.

San Francisco, a Deux

My brother got married outside of San Francisco on Saturday. Our AirBnB checkout time on Sunday was 11 AM, and our flight left the San Francisco airport at 7:16 PM. What do we do with the time in between? We asked? Make a day date of San Francisco, (on mutual agreement this time, see last year's post for the backstory on that).

First up, how to get from where we were to San Francisco? We took an Uber from the AirBnB and then took the ferry over from Sausalito. 

This was entirely the genius of my husband, and at $14 a person, probably cheaper than another Uber ride, and more scenic! From the top deck with saw the Golden Gate Bridge, the Bay Bridge (where I ran last year), Alcatraz, the port, and more. We also spotted dolphins, a pelican, and sea lions.

Once in San Francisco, of course we had to visit Boudain Bakery again. It was a bit of a walk, but worth it. I think we even sat at the same high-top table.

I wanted food, but not necessarily a sandwich. My husband asked what sounded good, and all I could think off was fish and chips, so we schlepped over to Broad Street Oyster Co. (Note that while we both wore/carried our backpacks, my husband pulled our 46 pound piece of checked luggage this whole way.) 

We were in Ghirardelli Square, and my husband wanted to try Dubai style chocolate, so we made a stop

(I did not think the chocolate was that great, but I am a dark chocolate girl and not the biggest fan of pistachios, so no big surprise. My husband likes to take a treat from travels back to his office, so he plans to share the rest of the treats with them.)

Then into the cable car line. (We wanted to ride last year, but did not have the time.) I would say we waited about an hour to get to the car, and then the drivers packed that thing full. But while we waited, we got to see the workers change the car tracks, and heard an accordion player perform.

The ride was much noisier than I expected, but at $9 a person, it was cheaper than getting another Uber or Waymo (since Waymo does run in this city).

From the cable car, we took the BART into the airport. Time burned? Six hours. Money spent? Well, probably as much as we would have paid for a better flight time. But hey, we got a day date out of it, and a maxed out one at that.

San Francisco, a Deux? Thumbs up. And after enjoying the respite of cool temperatures during our already hot Arizona summer, maybe we will be back?

Real Life Marriage: Telling My Husband What to Do

My husband asked me for a list of things to do. I had tried giving him lists before and they hadn't worked, but he asked for one this time, so I gave it to him. To my surprise, he actually completed it. And then he asked for another list the next day.

Lists are my thing. I like them...for me. It kind of stinks to have to give my husband a list of things to do, though. There is something within me that resists giving him lists because I feel like a school mistress giving her pupils homework. But hey, if this works, and this is what it looks like to share the household load, so be it.

The only other alternatives to giving my husband a list of things to do are to do all the things myself (which results in me either feeling bitter, or melting down, often both) or expect him to remember the things to do and constantly nag him (also ineffective). My husband tells me that if I give him a list of things to do, maybe he will eventually learn the daily tasks. Maybe, maybe not, but it's worth a shot.

We've been at this sharing household duties thing for a while now, and I must say, we are still pretty bad at it. I do not communicate as much as I should. I don't communicate as clearly as I should. I still make way too many decisions on my own, and I would still like my husband to initiate more tasks himself. But a few things are going better, so maybe the lists have helped.

Real Life Marriage: The Remodel

It all started with a leaky shower, a problem my husband thought he could fix (and probably could have had our house not been so old and that faucet probably been original). The attempt at fixing made the problem worse, and before long, each time we turned the faucet on and off, we feared the pipes might explode. We cordoned off the bathroom, and after Thanksgiving, my husband started to tear apart the bathroom, piece, by piece, by piece: the mirror, the vanity, the towel rack, the toilet, the walls, the floor, and lately, that blasted shower.

My husband anticipated a finish date of Christmas, and then New Year's, and then Valentine's Day. And then I said my birthday (in May). He kept running into snags, and he was attempting to do all the work after his "real work" (as in, his paying job). It would save us a lot of money this way, but did take all the more longer.

The floor required weeks of work just to level it. We needed to borrow our brother-in-law's truck to haul out the old debris. My husband needed to wait for a friend's help to load sheetrock (because I was working and also not strong enough to help). His uncle had to come help with some other things.

Our living room went from a comfortable sitting space, to a storage space, to an absolute disaster. My husband left his nightly routine of relaxing after work and going for evening runs to using most of his leisure time (and even taking time off work whenever he could) to toil away at the project. To help, I tried to do a little extra around the house and hold together my sanity. Mess is not my preference, and when my home is dirty and cluttered, it is hard for me to cope.

Date days turned into Home Depot runs. Evening conversations turned into budget meetings and design reviews. (My husband has an eye for design and space, so I really did little more than give my approval for his choices.) We were together on this project, but also not together.

When the end of the project seemed indefinite, and I had the post-marathon crazies (ahem crappies), I started decluttering. I am not sure if it is was my season of life or the utter mess, but it seemed like something I could do to control the situation.

In the end, the project miraculously finished faster than I expected. (Isn't at the end of things that the finish line feels so impossibly far away?) The bathroom is beautiful. The living room, laundry space, and our overall home are getting cleaner, and we are working on the clutter.

We survived the remodel, and though our interactions with each other did look different in this season, praise the Lord that our foundation held fast: "The Lord is [our] rock and [our] fortress and [our] deliverer, [our] God, [our] rock, in whom [we] take refuge, [our] shield, and the horn of [our] salvation, [our] stronghold" (English Standard Version, 2019, Psalm 18:2).

(Before and after photos by my husband)

Reference:

English Standard Version. (2019). Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/English-Standard-Version-ESV-Bible/#copy

Real Life Marriage: Holy Not Happy (A Reprise)

When I first got married, I really railed against the idea that marriage is "to make you holy not happy"  (a paraphrase from Gary Thomas' (2015) book Sacred Marriage). It was really that word "not" that I railed against. Marriage was making me happy, and I wanted to enjoy it. I still do. Marriage is a gift from God, one I do not want to take for granted. Six plus years into marriage, though, I think I am starting to get it.

I love my husband. Really, I do! He is a gift. He is smart, kind, caring, compassionate, helpful, wise, and so much more-AND-we are very different. Six years in, those differences seem to be becoming more, not less pronounced. Or maybe they are just becoming more apparent as we experience more of life together. If marriage was all about happiness, I would argue that we would be out. Marriage is a lot more about sanctification, or at least overtly choosing that path.

Being married to a very different person forces me to confront my selfishness over and over again. If I am honest, most of the time I just want to make choices that benefit myself. I want to eat what and where I want to eat. I want to do chores on my schedule. I want to watch movies I like. I want to spend money on things for me. Sometimes I want to make choices that benefit and bless my husband, but most often, I don't. Marriage makes that very apparent. Marriage show me how much I need to grow.

I have plenty of happy times with my husband. We enjoy adventuring together. We travel. We play games. In this season, though, my need to grow is apparent. I have always needed the Lord's sanctifying work, but now more than ever, I see it. Marriage is an instrument God is using in my life. Man, it can be rough. Man it can be painful. Since marriage is God's will for me, though, I would not have it any other way. I need to be more holy and when God in His grace allowed me to get married, this was part of His plan.

Reference:

Thomas, G. (2015). Sacred marriage: What if God designed marriage to make us holy rather than to make us happy? Zondervan.

Real Life Marriage: Marriage is a Vulnerability.

Anytime I watch a marriage crumble, I get a case of the fears. It is not that my husband gives me any reason to doubt his faithfulness or fidelity. It is that each and every time the demise of marriage catches me by surprise. People's relationships look and appear sound, until they're in a million pieces on the ground.

Marriage is a wonderful gift, but also a vulnerability. I have told my husband many times that I think I could survive his death more than his unfaithfulness. It's not that I want him to die or wouldn't miss him if he did. It's that I would have good memories and believe God could help me move on. If he cheated on me or otherwise left me, I know by God's grace I would survive, but I don't feel like I could. I think I'd rather God just take me home myself.

Paul writes in 1 Corinthians to urge people to stay unmarried if they could. He writes, "I want you to be free from anxieties" (English Standard Version, 2019, 1 Corinthians 7:32). I think the fears of marriage are part of what he means here. Marriage is great. It has blessed me with love and companionship and sanctification and growth. But if I am honest, it also leaves me afraid. All I can do is cling to God and try to walk the walk, because God knows, my marriage could be the next one to explode.

Proactively, are we doing all we can to preserve our marriage? No, probably not. We miss date nights. We miss devotionals. We have spats and I hold bitterness too long. But we are working on our marriage. God has grown our communication. We have safeguards in place to help us stay faithful. We have people who call us on stuff. Is it enough, though? No. Only God is enough. Our covenant is in Him, and only He is enough to hold us together, together, together, or should the worst happen, together with him to go through it.

Marriage is a risk, and I took it. The fear is real, though. The prayers to stay faithful, for others, and for ourselves, are also real. They are the only way in which I know to walk forward, because goodness, marriage is a mine field.

Reference:

English Standard Version. (2019). Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/English-Standard-Version-ESV-Bible/#copy

Real Life Marriage: Unexpected Blessings

My husband said for a long time that we needed to find a hobby to do together. I wasn't hip on the hobbies he suggested, and he wasn't interested in mine either, at least then. And then suddenly, this past fall, he started running with me. 

In all the years we spent together, we have run three 5Ks: one while we were dating, one the year we got married, and one we put on for ourselves during COVID. In the last three months of 205, however, we went to four different running events: OhSo2Sole, the Night Run, the Foster 5K, and a turkey trot. We ran the Night Run entirely together as a dating anniversary activity, and we finished the Foster 5K together. Yes, I invited my husband to these events, but he came, willingly. He went on to recently run a 5K all by himself

Of all the things I have prayed for in our marriage, this is not one of them (or at least a current prayer request). Before I met my husband, I think I thought it would be ideal if my future husband was a runner, but I was not set on it. Throughout most of our marriage, running has been my thing. My husband has supported me, and it has been good. Slowly over these past few months, however, running has become more of our thing. What a blessing!

I have prayed for many things in marriage. I have labored and strived and stressed. Most of them have not come to fruition during my periods of striving. If at all, they have come when I have given up, when I have decided to pray for my husband's character, instead of for something to change in him, or in our marriage. I think that is the way God works sometimes. God wants to change me when I pray, not just give my what I ask for.

God is not a vending machine. He is the source of "every good and perfect gift, however" (English Standard Version, 2019, James 1:17). He is the author of every blessing. Sometimes those gifts just do not come when or how I expect. Will future hard times come in our marriage? Certainly. Will I labor in prayer for things I want in our marriage, rather than what God wants? I am a sinner, so I probably will, but I hope I also grow in my joy in the Lord, in acceptance, and in contentment. 

God has given us marriage. He has given us for now, a shared hobby, and I am sure he will give us other unexpected blessings in the future. We just need to be open to receive them.I hope I also grow in looking for and seeing God's blessings, whatever they may be. To God be the glory!

Reference:

English Standard Version. (2019). Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/English-Standard-Version-ESV-Bible/#copy

Strong(er) in December/Stronger in 2025

Sometimes progress isn’t linear. Day to day, I don’t think I am making any gains, but then I look back, and I am think, “Wow, God. Thank you! I actually did go somewhere!”

I set out this year to become stronger in faith, marriage, and body. It’s hard to quantify faith growth, but I did finish the The Bible Recap, daily podcasts, Bible Project intros, and all. While not my favorite Bible reading plan, by reading in big chunks like I did, I did learn some things about the ways that Scripture hangs together as a hole. Praise God for how he shows up in Scripture over and over again.

I mostly listened to my one (or more) marriage podcast(s) a week. I kept praying for my husband thanks to the note on my daily to do list. We finished our marriage devotional. We took some trips (like the Hoover Dam Half Marathon trip in December) and went on some dates. (We finally got to see the cougar shadow!) We still miscommunicate a lot, but I think I am spiraling less, and therefore we recover faster. (Thanks, counseling, for helping a lot with that!)

This year, I graduated physical therapy (or asked to graduate, and they said, “Yes.”). I have added physical therapy exercises for my legs to my daily arms, routine, however. I got through all of the new free workouts published on the Nourish Move Love YouTube channel. I think my endurance has strengthened through my running. While I cannot do a full-pull-up, I did go from 50-125 pounds resistance band support down to 15-35 pounds for my last go-round of the assisted pull-up program. If I work really hard, I can get my nose to the bar unassisted. I am not really any bigger or buffer than I started the year, but functionally, my strength has grown. I also found out that I can sometimes up my dumbbells to 15 pounds for workouts—something I discovered unintentionally when I grabbed the wrong weights, but then patted myself on the back for afterwards.

Overall, I have realized that a lot of physical strength comes down to mental strength. I have also realized that I can't have it all. Pull-ups had to get rushed to get out the door for running. If I really wanted to get physically stronger, I would need to drop the running. I think that applies for my other goals as well. Time with my husband and pouring into that relationships sometimes meant sacrificing my own personal time and sleep. Trips meant less finances for other things. God-time meant less frivolous time, a worthy sacrifice, but still a sacrifice.

Overall, I'm not sure I gained a lot of quantifiable strength. By God's grace, I think I just might have learned about prioritizing and gotten a little stronger in practicing that. Believe me, I have a long way to go, and I think that lesson of not being able to do all the things with strength will carry into 2026 and beyond.

The Crystallized Moments of 2025

So many moments from this year...these are the ones that stuck with me.

See here for 2024 list.

Meeting pro athletes at the Hoka group run

PRing at the Mesa 10K



Brunching with my husband after Pat's Run



The privilege of being a Sparkle Runner at the Girls on the Run 5K



The feeling of flying as I ran the Bay Bridge Half Marathon



Catching snow in Big Bear

Reuniting with my parents in Texas

Dinner with my hubby after Global Running Day



Ringing the PR gong in the rain with my bestie's baby

The stunning beauty of the Traverse Mountain Half Marathon

The ease of a relaxed and quiet dinner with my in-laws over Thanksgiving

Lake Mead views



It's been a good one: Lots of running, lots of time with my love; family time.... Thank the good Lord, the author of "every good and perfect gift!" (English Standard Version, 2019, James 1:17).

Reference:

English Standard Version. (2019). Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/English-Standard-Version-ESV-Bible/#copy

Real Life Marriage: The Infinity Loop

We had just come off my husband finishing his degree when I decided to run a marathon. Really, I had been thinking about it for a while, and with the miles I had under me, I wanted to try it. For the first time in our marriage, it also felt safe to try. It felt like if I fell or floundered, my husband would be there to catch me.

I really struggled for a while when my husband was in school. Well, we both did. He had his nose to the grindstone with work and school, and I had mine stuck deep into keeping up the house and keeping up with my own work. It felt like there was no margin, and really, there wasn't.

Now that he's out of school, I've been chasing some other big dreams. He's been so supportive. Just the other day, I proposed a new running dream. I don't know if it will happen or not, but I felt comfortable voicing it. He didn't bat an eye. He just let me talk. What a gift!

I think marriage should be like that. I support his dreams. He supports mine. Rather than tit-for-tat, it's a give and take with infinite flow between the two. Yes, there are hurts, habits, and hang-ups along the way, but ultimately our support for one another is there, just like Christ's is for us. To Him be the glory forever, amen!

Strong(er) in November

Whew. It's been a month. And how has it already been a month? It seems like it has just flown by! We had our Utah trip, sickness, the Foster 5K, and Thanksgiving, and now the month is over.

How is our marriage doing? Up and down. That Utah trip was a boon to start the month, as we were stretched and strained in the weeks afterward. Our recent Thanksgiving trip, while not for our marriage specifically, was restful.

The good news is that we are founded in the Lord. The good news is that we are talking about the stress. The good/bad news is that we do not have answers to what needs to change about everyday life in order to grow stronger together.

Physically, I have kind of plateaued. I did accidentally use 15 pound dumbbells for my workout 11/5/25, and I made it. Otherwise than that, I am still working on pull-ups, but feel stagnated. I have one more month to go, but I might loose the power tower for the Christmas tree, so we will see if I even have a place to practice!

Spiritually, I am thankful to report that I have at least had some learning this month. I got some extra time to read my Bible while my husband was gone, and for some reason when I read my Bible over a meal, I seem to get more out of it. This time, I noticed some new things about the apostles in Acts. I also learned from The Bible Project introductions and Bible recaps. [For example, did you know that Jacobus/Jacob wrote James? (The Bible Project, n.d.). I have also been reading more of my wife devotional (which I guess could go towards my goal of strengthening our marriage.) While it is designed to be weekly, I started late and am only about halfway through. Therefore, I started reading daily. I might finish it this year....

Well, that is a wrap on this month. One more to go. May God find me faithful, even if not strength-full. His grace is sufficient for me, for his power is made perfect in my weakness (English Standard Version, 2016, 2 Corinthians 12:9). Praise Him! 

Reference:

The Bible Project. (n.d.). The book of James. https://bibleproject.com/guides/book-of-james/

English Standard Version. (2019). Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/English-Standard-Version-ESV-Bible/#copy