Seven things. Part 5.

Seven ways a child changed our marriage.

We discovered what being tired is really like.

Before having Cooper, Andrew wasn't a napper. Now he's all about the naps. Children bring mental, physical, and spiritual exhaustion. And guess what? They are a daily exhaustion. Being tired has the obvious side effects on our marriage: grumpiness, bad moods, shorter fuses, and a lot more napping.




















Shopping takes at least twice as long.

Shopping together was something that Andrew and I enjoyed doing. Add a little boy distracting you creates a longer, less desirable trip. Not to mention you have less room for your goods.
< --- Case in point.
























Time together at home is interrupted.

I think this picture pretty much captures that point perfectly. It is so hard for Andrew and I to have good, meaningful time together when Cooper is awake. Just when you think you're conversation is rolling, something is spilled, a butt needs to be wiped, or, in our case, you get a TMNT sword to the face. When he goes to bed, sad to say, we sit like vegetables most nights, trying to recover from our day.

Nights/Days out are few and far between.

This was not necessarily the case when we were in Florida. We had family close by. Now that we are 1000 miles away, and now that we have a very limited budget, our nights out come once in a blue moon. If we aren't careful, we could got months between dates. Sad face.





















We are constantly teaching.

Our actions, good and bad, big and small, all set an example for Cooper. We have had to be careful how we say things, what we say, and be quite conscious of how we treat each other.

The list of things we teach Cooper is endless: what's this, what's that, how to do this, how to do that, why we do this, why we don't do that.

Even when we aren't literally sitting down with Cooper or taking time to explain things to Cooper, our actions and the way we go about our life teach Cooper. They are {hopefully} teaching him how to love.








Our purpose is bigger.

This picture was taken when we dedicated ourselves to raising Cooper in a godly home. The purpose of our marriage far extends each other now. The greatest gift you can give your children is a great marriage. That is something I go back to often. The purpose of mine and Andrew's marriage now extends to our dear Cooper. This bigger purpose pushes us to work harder. I pray the that I can be around to see the reward of our hard work: a grown up child who loves the Lord, seeks Him in all he does, and has healthy relationships with himself and others. Our marriage is one of the greatest influences for Cooper in those areas. Our purpose is big, and we are determined.

There is a lot more love.

Being a parent has shown us how our hearts can open wider to love more. Having a child has given us laughter, smiles, warmth, and love, love, love, more love.

Andrew, thank you for being a great dad to Cooper. Thank you for choosing us. I'm so glad you are the father of my child. I'm grateful for your support and hard work in parenting. Thanks for being a man Cooper can look up to. I love you.