Things Are Not Always As They Seem

I know that people probably think that my life is all wine and roses, or at least that it must seem like that from the outside. Most people think "Oh, she's so lucky. She doesn't have to work!"

However, the reality of the situation is this: In one year of dating and eight years, four months and five days of marriage, the longest I have ever seen my husband is one month, and that was once, in September of 2009, when he took his sabbatical from work. The next longest amount of time is probably two weeks, and that occurs about once a year, usually around Christmastime.

Recently, my husband worked from home for two weeks during the holiday season and I loved having him home all that time. However, his going back to work was made even more sad by the fact that I know I won't see him for more than three days in a row again until...August. The August that is seven months from now.

In truth, I would gladly trade not having to work for being able to see my husband more than 3 days a week. Having to cram a week's worth of living into three days at a time is not only unrealistic, it's also totally exhausting. During weeks when we have my step-daughter over the weekend, we end up getting about five hours of quality alone-time on Sunday night to relax and enjoy each others company before we have to go to bed. Five hours a week. Woo!

When people ask me about having babies, my stock response is "when The Mister stops traveling so much". Who knows when that will be, but that's pretty much what is required. Otherwise, I would be pregnant and still in charge of cleaning the litter boxes a few times a week, which I understand is somewhat of a problem for pregnant ladies. (Well, if you're susceptible to toxoplasmosis, which not all women are.) But still... I have no desire to be either pregnant or have a small child while still being on my own most of the time.

Now, being alone quite a lot of the time isn't always bad. I think I'm better at problem-solving certain issues, and I'm much more independent than I would be otherwise. I also don't get tired of The Mister being around when he actually is, like a lot of other women seem to. I think that, though, is another one of those things where the grass is always greener.

I look forward to the day when I can actually see and interact with my husband on a daily or almost-daily basis. Hopefully that won't be another nine years from now. *fingers crossed!*