Extra hours.

I cut back my hours from 8 to 9 to 6-7 a day. So really, I only cut back two hours. Two hours?! It doesn't sound like much, but I think it's made a world of a difference in my life and more importantly in my marriage.

Those 8-9 hours, in addition to the stresses of work and my boss, made me mean. I swear. Not to mention the heachaches and wedding planning made me crazy. I can honestly say at certain points in the day, I hated him. I thought he was doing everything wrong and not helping me with anything. When really, the problem might have been me.

I stressed and stressed and stressed some more. But really it's been my entire life. I suffered from anxiety in college and probably continued with me in the years after.

So what have I done with those extra two hours?

I've invested or "put them back" into my marriage. I make more lunches and dinners, fold more of his laundry, stress less about a dirty house, and even *gasp* sleep in an extra hour or so. If I do not work early, I am wide awake by 7am. Is it weird that I use to get all huffy and puffy about him sleeping soundly when we "should" be doing something? I usually either wake him up or get up and start working on things all upset that he is not helping.

On Friday evening while driving home from work, I get a call from work that one of our circuit coaches quit. This news a month ago would send me into a tizzy. The old me would head into work the next day, Saturday, and stress all weekend. I simply told my boss, "I will handle it on Monday".

I walked in the door, smiled and gave my husband a hug and asked him how his day went.

It's only been three weeks, but I have never been happier. We laugh all of the time. He helps out more around the house (I swear I didn't ask for him to). He touches me more, smiles more.

The old me would think, he's been really nice and I don't know why, but I do know why. I am being nice too. I guess it's true, you get what you put in...

I love my extra two hours.