Reminiscing (warning...this one is a little mushy)

I heard a love song on Pandora today (When a Man Loves a Woman) and I started thinking about all the little things Josh does for me and it filled me with a feeling of overwhelming love and gratefulness for all he does.

One memory of him being amazing keeps playing over and over again in my head so I thought I'd write about it. :)

When we were living in South Africa, I got a staph infection in my hands that turned septic. It was horrible. I could hardly do anything. Shower, get dressed, use the restroom, brush my hair, eat. Josh had to help me with everything. And he did it without complaining. But that is not the memory that stands out. Because of the infection, when anything touched my hands it caused excruciating pain. Even sleeping became quite the task. When I finally was diagnosed and got proper medicine, slowly but surely the pain went away, along with all the other symptoms. I remember the first time I was able to interlock my fingers as I was praying. It was such a great feeling!

One day we came back to our house with our team and Josh and I were walking up to the door. He took my hand and held it as we ascended the stairs to the house. One of our team members turned around and said how cute it was that Josh held my hand even on really short walks (from the car to the door). He looked at her and said, "I have to make up for lost time." When my hands were hurt, he couldn't hold them. I never thought about him missing that. Those 8 words have found a permanent place in my heart. Josh meant what he said. He wasn't trying to be sweet or earn brownie points. He was just being genuine.

This made me think of all the other ways Josh is amazing. I will give just one more story. Last year I was visiting my sister and her family in Nebraska. I kissed my nephew goodbye the night before I left because I was leaving very early the next morning. Or so I thought. I guess my nephew wanted me to hang around a little longer because he passed on his stomach virus to me through that sweet little kiss. So I stayed a few more hours until I felt "well" enough to tackle the 6 hour drive home. By the time I got home that evening, my temperature was 101. I knew I had to eat something so Josh made some chicken noodle soup. I took just a few bites before climbing into bed.

The next day I was feeling better but still sick so I made some more soup. It was the same brand that Josh had made the day before, but this one had carrots in it. It dawned on me that Josh had picked out all of the little carrot pieces because he knows I don't like them. I'm pretty sure I started crying right away and had to call him and tell him how amazing he is.

I'm not sure why I felt the need to write these two memories down, but I just had a feeling that I should so I did. I am so blessed to have married such an amazing man. For these reasons and more I am so passionate about young women waiting for the man God has chosen for them instead of settling for what they think is the best they can do. There has been a blog brewing in my brain about this for some time so hopefully soon the time will come for me to write that one. But until then, ladies - wait for your man. Pray for your husband. I started praying for my husband when I was 15. When I finally met him, I recognized him. And I didn't meet him until I was 23 (almost 24). He's worth the wait!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0CxOTheRJk&list=RDh0CxOTheRJk

This is a link to my favorite version of "When a Man Loves a Woman". Enjoy!