Margin

I'm not going to lie, this last week has been difficult for me. On top of our typical Monday and Thursday night small groups, we spent Tuesday and Wednesday with friends. This was not a bad thing, but Tony was leaving Friday morning and I wanted a night with just him, especially after leaving him the weekend before. On top of this, I had to work some late hours which meant most days I came home from work in time to change and then immediately turn around to partake in the nights events. Once again, not a bad thing (I know I say this a lot), however, if there is one thing I learned about myself this week is that I like my downtime, or at least my alone time filled with cleaning, homework or other activity of my choice. All this nonstop activity left me pretty crabby, or at least terribly sarcastic.

Tony left on Friday morning to get to Michigan by 4 pm at the latest. He was attending a Promise Keepers conference with his dad and some of the men from the church he grew up in. (He had a great time and really appreciated being able to go to the conference and spend time with his family.) With him gone, I was left with some good quality time to myself.

Friday night I ran some errands (on my bike since Tony had the car) before I arrived back home after work. The dishes were done, a couple loads of laundry complete, and popcorn was made to settle in and watch some Netflix. Saturday was also spent doing laundry (after biking to the bank to get some more quarters), watching more Netflix, some other odd projects, playing portable ping pong with some friends, watching How to Train Your Dragon, and a skype date with a friend I haven't talked to in over a year. Overall, it was a great weekend for me to relax and collect myself before school began.

Beyond my self-realization, one thing Tony and I learned this last week in regards to our marriage is our need for margin. This upcoming semester I have a night class that requires my Tuesday and Thursday nights, Monday nights are spent with friends and small group (that we are now leading) has been moved to Wednesday nights. This completes our weeknights. It will be a very busy semester for me and Tony, but hopefully this realization will make a significant impact on how we manage our time.