Confessions of an IT Wife (And a Cover Reveal!)

I’ve shared about my secret life as an IT wife before (here) and now I’m going to share some confessions of an IT wife. πŸ™‚ In case you don’t speak tech, IT stands for Information Technology (not the crazy clown from a movie that a friend told me about, haha). Ever since I met hubby, he’s worked with computers. This explains why we have a surplus of monitors, laptops, and tablets lying around the house, plus wireless routers and cables and other electronic doodads. E mentioned once that his friend had to wait for his dad to come home from work in order to use his laptop to play games, to which I rolled my eyes and thought, You don’t know how good you have it, buddy.

But along with all the perks of a tech job comes the stress. I’m talking about STRESS with a capital S. I like to think of the IT department as a company’s first responders to a technical problem. And in this day and age, especially when you live in the Silicon Valley, a technical problem is more like a technical emergency. Cue the sirens and flashing lights … or emails and texts and phone calls at all hours of the day and night! He used to be the one fixing the issues, but now as the Fire Chief, he’s the one overseeing three dozen different issues at the same time. Hubby’s job is so all-encompassing and critical, that he carries a lot of his stress from the job back home. As a (trying to be) supportive wife, I do my best to listen and share in his load as much as I can. After 18 years of listening to him speak tech, I actually understand most of what he tells me now. πŸ˜‰ I didn’t realize though just how much I’ve been sucked into his world until I got inspired to write about it.

That’s right. I wrote a story about an IT guy. πŸ˜€ And since I write romance, I had to include an IT girl … and I bet you can guess what happens next.

I must confess though that I have had more than enough of the IT world, both the real and fictional ones. I’m sure I’m not the first IT wife/girlfriend who wishes her hubby/boyfriend spent as much time looking at her as he does his phone. πŸ˜‰ Or that he could spend one weekendβ€”or even a dayβ€”without worrying about something going down at work. But I’m thankful he has a good job and our family has the best tech support available 24/7/365 (although sometimes we have to share him)! Most of all, I’m grateful I get to walk side by side with my IT guy through all the crazy ups and downs of his IT career.

Now for the fun stuff … here’s the cover reveal for A Spoonful of Spice, the second short story in my Seasons of Love series!

*Updated Sept. 3, 2016: This cover is no longer the cover for my story! Go HERE to find out why. πŸ˜‰

ASOS

Josh Pepper has one goal: to become the next manager in his IT department. But his career plans are sidelined when the first woman, Cin Thomas, joins the team. He now needs to keep everyone from being distracted by her presence, a task that appears easy to accomplish … until she starts invading his dreams with her piercing green eyes.

And here’s the playlist to give you a taste of the story. πŸ™‚

 

What is Marriage Good For?

Our church started a new sermon series titled “The Vow”, and the first message was about the hardships of marriage. A friend and I were talking about it and she mused that most of the sermons she’s heard on the topic make marriage sound challenging, difficult and just plain depressing. Yikes.

Well, to be fair, any interaction you have with another human being on a consistent basis (ie. at work, school or home) will face hardships from time to time. People are imperfect and needy and broken, so yep, relationships are hard. And when you have two people committed to building a life together through marriage, you’ve got plenty of ammunition on your hands for WWIII. What’s the lesson here? Get a dog or cat if you want to avoid hardships. Kidding (kind of)! πŸ˜‰ The real question I’ve been thinking about is this: What is marriage good for?

Married or single, I’m sure you have your ideas of what marriage is like or should be like. When I turned 18, I remember telling my mom I was old enough to be married (in other words, I was old enough that I didn’t need to listen to her anymore, haha), but I had NO idea what being married involved. When I did get married at 25, I started learning exactly what marriage was and what it wasn’t.

Marriage isn’t a free pass to do or say whatever you want and expect your spouse to put up with it. It’s also not the right to expect your wife or husband to fulfill all your needs and make you happy. If that’s your idea of marriage, you’re in for a rude awakeningβ€”like a bucket of ice water poured over your head kind of wake-up-call!

So what is marriage good for? Essentially, the husband and wife relationship is THE training ground to learning how to love another person better.

We may say we love the people in our lives, such as our friends and family (and especially cute, cuddly kittens or puppies), but until that love has been stretched and pulled and twisted and knotted, we don’t truly know the heights and depths of our love. That’s why marriage, with all its crazy, real-life, day-to-day opportunities for you and your spouse to be authenticβ€”to show the real YOUβ€”gives you endless chances to love (and be loved) over and over again.

Ultimately, marriage should be a sanctuary. A safe place for messiness and mishaps. For growth and second (and more) chances. For appreciation and acceptance. For unconditional love.

I’m reminded of a conversation hubby and I had when he shared about some of his old memories and regrets. He brought something up to which I replied, “You already told me this a long time ago.” He stopped in surprise and said, “Wow, I must trust you.”

Yes, this is surely a sign that hubby has a bad memory (which we already were aware of), but it also confirmed the fact that we’ve come a long way in our marriage. Far over the dark valley of anger and resentment, through the rough terrain of disappointment and hurt, and up the steep mountain of forgiveness. We are now closer to the peak of trust, respect, and love that marriage is all about. Which is a testament of God’s abundant grace because marriageβ€”as all the sermons out there sayβ€”is hard. But when it’s good, it’s oh-so good.

Isn't the view at the top grand and worth the journey?

Isn’t the view at the top grand and worth the journey?

So, the next time you hear a message about how difficult marriage is, nod in agreement, but also challenge that belief by doing the precious work of loving your spouse hard and deep and strong. Because that’s what marriage is good for.

Here’s a beautiful song by John Legend about the realities of love: “Ordinary People”.

What do you think marriage is good for?

Lessons on Life and Love from Beauty and the Beast

I spent yesterday morning chaperoning a field trip with both munchkins to watch “Beauty and the Beast” at our local community college. As expected for a Disney-related play, it was equal parts scary and sweet. Poor C ended up sitting on my lap for most of the show because the Beast had some anger management issues after the enchanted castle spirits cast a spell on him. Thankfully, Beauty entered the picture soon after and came to care for him, despite his hardened heart. She agreed to marry him, and he turned back into a prince (and secretly stuffed his beastly mask into a bag as C informed me). πŸ˜‰

I came away from this play with two thoughts: one, Disney stories are not exactly kid-friendly, and two, what are kids supposed to learn from watching this?

There were some good lessons in the play, such as commitment to your family and keeping your word. But of course the moral of the story was: Don’t judge a guy by his looks or wealth or status. In a culture that values all of the above, however, that’s a hard lesson to swallow.

That was the belief I grew up with. Both my parents went to college, I went to college and grad school, and multiple people in my extended family have Ph.D.’s. The majority of my friends at school and church existed in similar bubbles. As an Asian, you’re expected to work hard in school and get straight A’s so you can go to a good college and graduate with a degree (or two). So imagine my surprise when I met and fell for a Chinese guy who (at the time) had done none of the above.

Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici/freedigitalphotos.net

Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici/freedigitalphotos.net

Good thing hubby was cute. (I kid!) But it wasn’t just his infectious smile that caught my attention. I was also drawn to his enthusiasm for life (he reminded me of a chinchilla bouncing off the walls) and the kind way he treated people. When I found out he hadn’t followed the typical path of every other Asian I knew, I was shocked. But not shocked enough that his education (or lack thereof) became a deal breaker (thankfully, it wasn’t for my parents either).

Because there’s more to a person than the abbreviations following their last name, the size of their house or the car they drive. Neither is one’s worth measured by their dress size or by how many friends they have on Facebook. The true value of a person can only be found in their heart.

That’s what Beauty believed when she fell in love with the Beast. And what I believed when I fell for hubby.

Nevertheless, this is a lesson I’m still learning. For instance, when E told me he doesn’t want to go to college, I was a liiitle upset. πŸ˜› Sure, he’s years away from seriously thinking about it, but in my mind, the decision to go to college is a no brainer. Good thing hubby is more open-minded. Maybe given some time, I will be, too. πŸ˜‰

For now I will do my best to rest in this truth from 1 Samuel 16:7: “God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

Here’s the song, “Something There” from the Beauty and the Beast, which describes the moment Belle saw the Beast’s heart for the first time. πŸ™‚

What outward things about a person do you value? What inward things would you like to value instead?

Killing Your Spouse with Kindness

I watched “War Room” this week with my mom and sister (at my mom’s request for her birthday girl’s only hangout). It was a good movie with fairly good acting, funny and touching moments, and above all, a good message. I came away with two reminders: one, that prayer is powerful and it works(!), and two, that marriages can be torn down by a single word.

The movie starts out with a husband and wife who do what husbands and wives do on occasion – they fight. With furrowed brows and clenched fists, they exchange mean words, throw around accusations and blame, and retreat to their own corners till the next match. Every time they open their mouths, you know what comes out is not going to be pretty. And with each word they spew, the tension on the screen grows and grows until you wonder if the characters’ relationship will soon be irreparable. πŸ™

But through a series of events and the not-so-by-chance help of an older, prayerful woman (she’s a fun actress to watch!), the wife starts changing her ways. The change comes slowly, but surely, as she renews her love for her husband and begins praying for him. Her heart softens to the point where she no longer has anything negative to say to him (or about him). Her words and attitude toward him are so different that at one point he wonders if she secretly poisoned his meal, and switches dinner plates with her when she’s not looking. πŸ˜› And with time, God answers the wife’s prayers and works in the husband’s life and heart to soften him up, too. I won’t spoil the ending, but you can probably guess that it’s a happy one.

Now I don’t profess to have a perfect marriage (hubby can vouch for that!), but one thing I do appreciate about our relationship is the courtesy we extend toward one another. Oh, we have our share of disagreements and messy moments that require lots of forgiveness and humility to move past, but most of the time, we try to be kind with our words. Because we know that words have the power to heal or destroy. As in the words of Proverbs 15:1, “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”

It’s amazing what a simple  “please” or “thank you” can do to soften your spouse’s heart. Or what the simple act of willingly getting out of a warm, cozy bed to go downstairs to stick the wet clothes in the dryer means to the spouse who gets to stay in the warm, cozy bed (thank you, Honey! :D). It’s just plain and simple courtesy, but when each word and act of kindness are added together, they can produce a mutually respectful and loving marriage.

All it takes is one kind word or one kind gesture to tip the scale toward kindness. And it just takes one person to start. So let’s be that one person. πŸ™‚

P.S. I’m adding this picture as a reminder to myself of one way I can be kind to hubby, by making him breakfast. It’s something his mom used to make for him when he was a kid. 1 hot dog + 2 eggs = 100%. It was meant to be an encouragement to do well in school. So Asian, I know! πŸ˜‰

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Here’s proof that your kind gesture doesn’t have to look pretty! Haha

Here’s Selena Gomez’s song, “Kill ‘Em with Kindness”. There’s some good whistling in the song, too.

How can you share kindness with your spouse or a family member today?

Adding Conflict to Romance (+ A Sneak Peek at My WIP’s Cover!)

It’s been raining a lot here in California, and with the wetness comes a lot of allergies. I’m not sure what was in the air yesterday, but I was sneezing almost non-stop. By the end of the evening, C said my face looked burnt, and I was ready to crawl into bed and hibernate.

I hoped some sleep would help, but I woke up this morning with another sneezing fit. After I had ah-chooed a big one, I turned to hubby and exclaimed, “What is wrong with me?!”

He grinned and replied (a little too) quickly, “That’s what I’ve been wondering, too, for a long time.”

Hardy har har. πŸ˜›

Okay, I admit I totally set the stage for hubby’s punchline, but most of the time he doesn’t need any help from me to mess with my head. πŸ˜‰ Take the instances when he’s in the shower (and I’m on the porcelain throne) and I wonder why in the world I’m getting rained on … until I notice hubby oh-so innocently throwing water over the glass door in my direction. Argh! πŸ˜‰ Yup, as I’ve said before, he’s the sand paper to my sharp corners, and I’m the hole in his bubble. The very things we love about each other are also the very things that can drive us craaazy.

But what romance would be complete without some conflict? When I read or watch love stories, I do so to feel the push and pull between characters and to virtually experience the highs and lows they have to go through to find love. It’s much more exciting when you have some kind of obstacle (ie. a comatose brother or a scheming family friend) on the way to happily ever after. Wouldn’t you agree? And as a writer, I want to provide that entertainment in a meaningful and believable way (always with humor of course!).

I think this is why I’ve been struggling so much with the third book in my “Taking Chances” series. I have been working on this WIP (work-in-progress) for nine months now and it’s been, in one word, hard. Like this kind of hard:

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Hahaha!

Ever since I got feedback on my first book that the story lacked conflict, I’ve been trying to make life harder for my characters, which in turn is making life harder for me, too. It got to the point where I vowed to never write another romance book (after I finish this one of course) because people and love can be so complicated. That lasted about a day though because I realized the conflict I’m having with writing conflict is something I can’t escape from. Like my characters, I need to struggle through the trying, heart-wrenching, angsty times in order to earn the right to type “The End” on the last page of a book. Isn’t it ironic, that the one thing I’m forcing my characters to face is the one thing I don’t want to deal with. πŸ˜‰

So, that’s where I am, struggling to write this book that so far is my favorite one that I’ve written. Now if only I could get it finished and published so you can enjoy it, too. πŸ™‚ But in the meantime, here’s a sneak peek.

Drawn to You_peek

When I showed hubby the cover, he said, “It looks like the girl is upset and kneeing the guy.” Haha! Yup, there’s a lot of conflict in this story. πŸ˜‰

Alrighty, I’ll end here with a sassy song by Walk The Moon that my sassy main character reminds me of, “Shut Up and Dance”.  πŸ™‚

How has conflict made your relationships more interesting?

The Secret Life of an IT Wife

Sometimes I feel like I’m married to a firefighter. Hubby may not drive around town in a big red truck putting out raging fires, but as an IT guy, he’s the one who comes running whenever something technical goes up in flames in the corporate world. He’s the guy who might have received a phone call during his honeymoon because rolling blackouts at home shut all the company’s servers down. He’s the one who may have gotten a call on Thanksgiving from an employee working in Singapore who forgot it was a national holiday in the States that day. He’s also likely the one who missed dinner with his family on his wife’s birthday because he was stuck at work trying to resolve yet another issue (but to put things into perspective, he was hours late for his own birthday dinner a few years ago due to work). πŸ˜›

Suffice it to say, being married to an IT guy can be challenging at times.

Image courtesy of dan/freedigitalphotos.net

Image courtesy of dan/freedigitalphotos.net

I don’t share all this to complain about hubby’s job, although I’m sure life would be different if he were in a calmer line of work. I also don’t share this to brag about how understanding and patient and supportive I am because if I had all those awesome qualities, I would be polishing my halo right now instead of trying to find it. πŸ˜‰ The reason I’m giving you a sneak peak into the secret life of an IT wife is because I know there are couples struggling in their marriages right now with whatever issues they are going through, and the struggle is real.

I wish I had some great insight into how to better communicate with your spouse or how to keep your love burning strong, but I’m still learning “on the job”, too. But one thing I did realize this week while hubby was dealing with a company phone issue and later on, an email issue, was that I didn’t truly understand what work was like for him on a daily basis. It didn’t hit me until one afternoon during one of C’s massive meltdowns over a homework assignment. Thanks to E (and the power of sibling rivalry), she had gotten thrown off while counting for a math problem, and promptly began wailing at the top of her lungs in frustration. As if to prove she might one day consider a career as an opera singer, she raised her volume up two notches and her range another octave. By the time her cantata was over, my ears were ringing and my blood pressure was off the charts.

That evening when hubby was venting about the issues he had faced at work that day and feeling the pain of an oncoming migraine, I suddenly got a peek into his world. For a moment I understood what it was like to walk in his shoes. The overwhelming level of frustration, anger and anxiety I experienced during C’s “performance” gave me a glimpse of the emotional stuff he faces at work EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.

I told him, “I get it now. It’s like you’re constantly dealing with tantrums and meltdowns at work.”

He smirked and joked back, “Yes, I have a lot of kids to deal with.”

Boy, he sure does, and those “kids” aren’t even half as cute as ours are (even when they’re singing opera).

Sigh. Poor hubby. The struggle out there in the working world is real. So real, that it sometimes a lot of the times follows him home and places a strain on us, our family life and our marriage. But instead of letting the stress and busyness divide us, I’m learning to choose empathy. I’m finding ways to better support hubby as he fights fires. I try to make his life sweeter, even if it means spending half an hour with wrinkly hands submerged in a bowl of water in order to deseed four pomegranates, hubby’s favorite winter fruit (FYI, some people prefer the spoon method). We’re both learning to lean on God more and to rest in His saving grace. And we sneak in as much time as possible whenever we can to catch up and support each other throughout the day with a text message or two.

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All this yummy goodness, and hubby gobbled it up in like 2 days! πŸ˜›

The secret life of an IT wife may not be a glamorous one, but it’s the one I have and the one I’ll make the best out of … because the IT guy I’m married to is worth it.

Lastly, I want to give a shout-out to all the amazing wives of those in uniform who fight literal fires, chase real bad guys and put their lives on the line each day to protect others. You ladies have my deepest respect, admiration and gratitude.

Take a listen to Beyonce’s song, “Halo”, a reminder that we can all wear a “halo” and show grace to the people in our lives.

Who has been a source of strength and support for you? Who have you been there for?

Lost: One Man’s Wedding Ring

There’s one thing for sure about hubby and me: we are as different as a poodle and a great dane. I’m a night owl, he’s a morning bird. I’m frugal, he’s generous. I’m neat, he’s …, well, you get the picture. πŸ˜‰

Another thing we’re complete opposites in is the way we wear our wedding rings. In all the years that we’ve been married, I’ve only taken mine off when I was pregnant (and bloated); he takes his off several times a day. Whether it’s because he’s washing his hands or putting on lotion or fixing something around the house, more often than not, hubby goes around ringless. He also ends up forgetting where he put his ring, and I (or one of the kids) will spot it on the kitchen counter or bathroom sink or dining table and return it to him.

Our family game of “lost and found” has worked well for many years … until now. You see, it’s been over a month since anyone has seen hubby’s ring and all of our attempts at locating it have failed (even the one where he offered the kids a $10 reward; you can imagine how hard they tried to find it then!).

Which is why hubby and I decided to go to the mall on a recent date night to peruse the jewelry stores. This was actually our first time shopping for wedding rings because we had gone the Asian route (aka. cheap and efficient) when we got married and had his dad pick up matching bands for us in Hong Kong (he used to be in the jewelry business). We figured it was time to choose a new set ourselves and as a pre-celebration of our 15th anniversary next year.

So, there we were heading to the first jewelry store when hubby reached down and took my hand. He held it tight, placing his warm palm against mine.

I looked over in surprise at his sudden display of affection.

He then grinned at me and said, “We should look like we’re in love.”

HA HA! (Yes, I married a funny one.)

Sure, hubby was joking, but part of me started thinking that we probably don’t look as “in love” now as we did when we first got together. Back in those early days, I remember we held hands ALL. THE. TIME. We held hands while we rode in the car, while we walked from the parking lot to our destination (ie. the movies/park/store/restaurant/mall), and back again.

Somewhere along the way, however, we stopped reaching for the other’s hand. Life happened, and our hands got full with long hours at work, dirty diapers and other things that took our time and attention away from each other. There’s no doubt that our relationship has grown and deepened a lot over the years, but it’s lost some of the sweetness that fueled it in the first place.

When we were really newlyweds. :)

When we were newlyweds. πŸ™‚ (Look, no gray hair!)

Thankfully, our evening as an “engaged couple” brought it back to us. We held hands more that night than we probably had in a long time. And it was nice to connect in that simple, yet powerful way.

There was one thing we found out though that was not so nice. Rings cost a lot more now than they did fifteen years ago. It’s going to cost us a bit of money to buy new wedding rings, but ultimately, the lesson learned from doing so is priceless. πŸ™‚

Here’s a super cute song, “Here Come Those Eyes” by Chris Rice, which captures the sweetness of love so well.

How do you show love and affection to your loved ones? How has that changed over the years?

What the Avengers Taught Me About Marriage

Here’s the question of the day: Who is your favorite superhero?

Wonder Woman? The Flash? Black Widow? Batman? Who would you pick?

I have a theory about how people answer this question. I think you’re most likely to choose the superhero that you identify with.

So if you asked my hubby who his favorite one is, he’d automatically say Iron Man.

Me? I’d go with Captain America.

Image courtesy of flickr

Image courtesy of flickr

Which totally explains all the conflict that we have in our marriage. πŸ˜‰

Watching the recent Avengers movie confirmed this. Every time Captain America reminded someone to watch their language, I smiled (and cheered). And every time Iron Man made fun of him for doing that, I rolled my eyes. It was like watching the dynamics of our marriage played out on the big screen, except with a lot more explosions and fancy special effects.

If you know anything about the characters from the comics or movies, you’ll know that these two superheroes are fairly different. Okay, they’re more like night and day, complete opposites. We’re talking about Mr. No-Holds-Barred vs. Ms. Goody-2-Shoes. And while you might think one guy is the tougher/smarter/cooler/nobler one, the truth is that they’re both superheroes in their own right.

That’s the marriage lesson I came away with after watching Avengers: Age of Ultron. All the superheroes have their own unique personalities and backstories (which the movie did a good job of going into this time). They all have their own strengths and weaknesses. By themselves, they would never be able to defeat the bad guy. But together, they were able to save the world from destruction – and provide a lot of entertaining moments along the way.

Just like me and hubby … except without the high tech gadgets and evil robot.

Now excuse me while I go hang up my cape. πŸ™‚

Hehehe

Hehehe! A funny left over from a few weeks ago.

I heard Peter Frampton’s “Baby, I Love Your Way” on the radio the other day and thought it’d be a good song for this post. Even though hubby and I have different ways of doing things, I’m learning to appreciate his way and hopefully, vice versa. πŸ™‚

Who is your favorite superhero?

Falling in Love vs. Staying in Love

Falling in love is easy, wouldn’t you agree?

Boy meets girl; boy asks girl out; girl is late for their date by an hour (and couldn’t call because these were pre-cell phone days, so boy waited patiently and may or may not have had to take care of some business in the bushes – thank God it was dark!); girl finally arrives (and is very sorry, but traffic coming home across the bridge was bad); boy and girl go to dinner, fall in love and get married.

See how simple that was?

Now, let’s fast forward some 4,985 days. Boy and girl are now older and wiser wireless and have most of their daily conversations via text; boy lovingly plucks girl’s gray hairs with an eyebrow tweezer – those short ones on top of her head keep growing back!; girl discovers with some amusement that boy has a (very recent) passion for gardening; boy and girl are constantly interrupted by two clones of themselves, but do their best to stay in love and be connected.

Eeks. Life and love are not so simple anymore, is it?

Sure, life is a lot more complicated now. But it’s also a lot more real. Falling in love is easy because it’s all about the unknown, the unexpected, the discovering. Seeing someone at their best and showing the best of yourself. It’s about the feelings someone else makes you feel.

I used to think falling in love was more fun than staying in love. Well, sometimes it is, but the truth is that real joy comes more from giving than receiving.

Staying in love is all about the giving – how you make someone else feel. It’s the supportive words you offer after her long day at home with the kids; the embrace you give when he is feeling defeated from work; the ability to understand just exactly how the other person is feeling by looking at him because you know him better than anyone else.

And that part of love – the already-discovered, the expected, and the known – is pretty awesome.

On that note, take a look at hubby’s awesome succulent creations. πŸ™‚

Hubby's own succulent plant creation.

Who knew he had a green thumb?!

I love Ed Sheeran’s new song, “Thinking Out Loud”. The lyrics are beautiful and his dancing is pretty amazing, too. πŸ™‚

How do you stay in love or see others in your life stay in love?

Movie Quotes & Marriage

Have you ever considered how much movie lines stick in your head long after you’ve watched a film? Let me throw out a few to get your gears turning.

“I love you. You complete me.”

β€œDon’t forget I’m just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her.” 

β€œAs you wish.”

“I’m not a smart man … but I know what love is.”

And my favorite (sarcasm intended) …

“I’ll never let go, Jack, I’ll never let go.” (Says Rose right before she promptly lets go of Jack’s hand and watches him sink into the cold, dark abyss of the sea.) πŸ˜‰

Sigh, so many romantic movies with so many romantic quotes. Don’t you feel the warm fuzzies just thinking about them?

Well, this past weekend I had one movie quote running through my mind as we were having lunch at Five Guys Burgers & Fries (our default pick because we forgot Chick-fil-A was closed on Sunday – sniff!). The munchkins and I were sitting at a table while hubby ordered our meal. When he brought the food back to our table, he set down two large brown paper bags. After he had emptied the first bag with all four of our burgers, I asked him, “What’s in the second bag?”

He stuck his hand in the second bag and replied, “Oh wow, this is a lot,” and proceeded to pull out a 20 ounce paper cup full of fries. Then with a sheepish smile, he said, “There’s another one in the bag. I didn’t know they were so big.”

Aiya. Dear hubby had ordered two large size fries, and I knew for a fact (call it woman’s intuition) that we were not going to be able to finish the first 20 ounce cup, let alone touch the second one.

Did I mention that each order of fries cost over $5.00? And that a ton of potatoes (straight from Idaho as a white board on the restaurant’s wall proclaimed) had sacrificed their tuber-rific lives to fill up those 40 ounces?

A lot of thoughts were running through my frugal mind at that point. Thoughts which would be better left unspoken, especially considering the regretful look on hubby’s face when he realized he had ordered way too much.

But another thought, actually a line from a movie, also ran through my mind as I stared at our bounty of spuds. It was this:

Image courtesy of pinterest

Image courtesy of pinterest

 

Yup, that’s Thumper there from the movie Bambi. And he sure has some good relationship advice. It’s true. If I didn’t have anything good to say to hubby about the fries, then it was better that I say nothing at all.

Zip. Nada. Zilch.

So I kept my mouth occupied with bites of my burger and decided to let it go (thank you, Elsa). Moreover, I chose to be thankful. Thankful that hubby is way more generous than I am and would rather err on the side of having too much than not enough. And especially thankful that after 13 years of marriage, I’m finally learning how to put love into action, even if it’s being silent.

Here’s an appropriate song for this post, Alison Krauss’ When You Say Nothing At All.

What’s your favorite movie quote?

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