Halfway

Today was an exciting day.  Not because I finally started getting the outside Christmas lights up; not because we slept in, watched a movie THEN ate breakfast; but because today was the last day of Riah's 3rd quarter.  Which means he's HALF WAY THROUGH HIS NURSING PROGRAM!!!!!!!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think I might be a little bit excited about this. A little.

Why?

Because for the almost-13 years we've been married, life has sort of revolved around the construction industry.  Well, not revolved, per se, but more like........underpinnings.  The whole dang industry was tightly knit into the underpinnings of our lives.  It's not as dramatic as it sounds, but let me tell you, it was certainly influential.

Of course there was the income part: when, how much, where's it coming from, which bills get paid now, which get paid later...blah blah blah, boring boring boring.  But it was more than that.  It was him leaving before any of the rest of us woke up, then coming home after dinner.  It was having to work the morning of the 4th of July, making it impossible for us to stay for the extended weekend with family in town.  It was trying to run a framing business when neither of us had any semblance of a business clue.  It was sometimes working out of town for a week or two at a time.  Or more.

So I'm excited.

I'm excited because the next quarter doesn't start until January 7th.  He has a Whole. Stinking. Month. Off.  I am giggling in front of the computer right now.

I'm excited because even when he has classes or clinicals or a study group, he's still here.  He can pick up milk on the way home.  He can come to a soccer game.  He can be here for the mundane things in life.  You know, the precious ones that you cherish forever, like slobbery chubby fingers and batty eyelashes and mispronounced words?  Those.  He can take a moment in the middle of what he's doing and say, "Gimme that chubby boy!"  Which he does.

I'm excited because when he's done he can be in demand, instead of having to compete for the opportunity to be able to utilize his skills.

I'm excited because at the end of it all, we will enter a different universe.  A universe that contains such crazy concepts as Predictable Income.  A Schedule.  Time Off.  Better yet, Paid Time Off.  Sick Leave.  Insurance.  We've had little glimpses of it here & there, but this will be a full-on immersion into this universe!    (Oh, and nothing called Walking On Top Of Framed Walls When It's Icy.  Or Almost Falling Off Rooftops.  I'm glad to have left those behind.)

I'm excited and proud because he's learning so much.  He's doing well, like I knew he would.  Not as well as he'd hope, but well.  He's respected, liked, trusted...all that good stuff.  He's succeeding.

And I'm excited.