Happy Monday, dear reader. This weekend was a milestone weekend here on the farm. Because we had record sales, quintuplet goat births, or added new members to our farm family? No. My bib overall-wearing buddy actually left the farm to have breakfast with an old friend, AND The Bibbed Wonder planned the breakfast bro date. That isn't such a big deal to you (and most normal people). However, this is a big deal in my bib overall wearing buddy's world.
Eric never leaves the farm of his own accord for sheer entertainment purposes. He will leave to run errands, go to markets, get feed, or do something business-related. However, he never leaves the farm just to meet a friend for breakfast. It was kind of a big deal. The Bean and I said to him several times, "I'm very proud of you!" and we meant it. You see, dear reader, my husband is a workaholic. Not only is he a workaholic, but he cannot relax or unwind. He is the hardest-working person I know and makes me very proud. The Bibbed Wonder is capable of many great things, but he cannot strike a work/life balance. Work is his life.
I cannot get him to go on a vacation. To date, we have not been on a family vacation since 2015. He always has an excuse as to why he cannot leave the farm. Now, granted, most of them are valid reasons. However, we could at least go for a long weekend with our trusted friend, Jenna. The Bibbed Wonder disagrees with this opinion. If I push him too hard to leave or make plans, it creates stress for him rather than help him relax. Sigh.
I was thrilled when he told me he had made plans with a childhood friend earlier in the week. I couldn't make too much of a fuss about it, or it would backfire, so I merely smiled, said, "That's good. Where are you going for breakfast?" and left it at that. Meanwhile, I messaged The Bean and said, "Guess what? Dad has a man date on Saturday!" Her response was, "No way! With whom? What did he do? Is he feeling okay?" I laughed out loud at her response.
On Saturday, my little bib overall-clad buddy was up bright and early, got everything he deemed needed to be done, and went for breakfast with his friend. He returned home around 11:00 a.m. and informed me his friend would pick him up and take him to his farm to check out his long-horn cattle. He seemed rather sheepish and a bit guilty about the whole thing. He asked, "Do you have anything you need me to do? I can stay home if you need me." I told him I needed him to go with his friend and have a good time. I added you deserve a day of not doing anything. Go and enjoy yourself. Seeing him relaxing and enjoying a day off the farm did my little heart good.
He did thoroughly enjoy himself. He and Adam spent the day together and hung out until 5:00. One of my favorite sounds is my husband's authentic, deep belly laugh. I heard a lot of laughter that day. I hope this is something that continues. I love my husband, and I enjoy spending our days, nights, weekends, holidays, and all the in-between hours together, but he needs friends and a life outside of us and the farm. He needs to strike a balance between work and fun. In my opinion, if one works as hard as he does, one should play equally as hard. However, nobody really cares about opinions. Sigh.
On this lovely February day, stay safe, be smart, make time for friends, strike a balance between work and play, and keep washing your hands.