I will have been blissfully married for three years in December. My husband is the hero of my life for many reasons (agh…I always cry when I write about him!), but one of those reasons is his tireless work ethic. For the past three years, he’s worked a full time job with two part-time jobs. You can imagine, then, that we haven’t shared many weeks of identical work schedules and peaceful evenings at home watching Jeopardy. I have had to learn how to love and support my husband as he does what he feels necessary to support us and advance his career. He’s the kind of man who will gladly do the nastiest tasks and stay until all the work is completed, no matter how long that takes. While I admire that, working 3 hours of overtime each night doesn’t help my now dried-out chicken sitting on the stove! I have a lot to learn, but I want to share a few things that have helped us through the years of 3 jobs!
Tip #1: Make Communication A Priority
Set up a shared calendar that you both can access and edit. We share a Google Calendar associated with our email addresses. It’s helpful for me to see what Paul’s schedule will be, just for the comfort of knowing where he is. I add things like family holidays, birthdays, even church events and send him an invitation. It helps us stay connected when we aren’t able to discuss our plans over a candle light meal. 🙂 This calendar format also helps me to see the “blocks” of time we have together!
Text each other. This is a great way to stay connected when you’re on different sleep cycles. If you only see your spouse when he is sleeping, it’s easy to become disconnected! There was a month about a year ago that I only saw my husband for about 20 minutes at 5AM every day. I am not able to look ravishing at that time (ha!), so I made sure to send him a “selfie” each morning after I got ready. Didn’t want him to have that scary 5AM image of me in his head all day long! Sending pictures of yourself during the day also helps establish trust. Sending little messages, both romantic and practical, keeps you connected during the day.
Get creative. Paul and I were very excited about the season premiere of NCIS, but he ended up having to work that night. I watched it without him (can you blame me??!) but texted him my spoiler-free responses that I would have said out loud if we were watching it together. We “shared the moment” without being physically together.
How have you and your husband communicated during your work days? I know I’m not the only one out there with a workaholic* spouse!
*I am using “workaholic” in the most positive sense possible. I am extremely grateful that my husband is not lazy. My desire with this series is to help other wives see their hard working husbands in a new light as we all learn to love them with godly love!
Come Home For Comfort 
You are one cool wife, and I’m sure your hubby is aware of that!
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Yep, I remind him often! Haha!
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Whitney, I can so relate to your blog today. For many years Tim worked in retail which caused him to work most weekends and late nights. As difficult as it was, his work ethic and experience have now allowed him to prosper in Real Estate and to manage a roofing company. I’m happy to say that God has blessed us financially now because of it. I too, admire your hubby for achieving financial and career goals. Hang in there and keep being creative with your communication and opportunities to be together, prayerfully it won’t be long until he’s accomplished his goals and you’ll not only reap the benefits of God’s blessings, but have much more time together. Love, Aunt Sharee
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I thought of you a couple times while I was writing this post, because I know you’ve walked this road too! I’m glad Tim is able to cool it a little bit now, and that his business is doing well! I am trying to be like Nana and enjoy each stage of life, no matter the circumstances. =) Thanks for sharing!
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