Tree Hugger...

This weekend was full and happy. We had some new friends over on Friday night for Peggy Kretz's Stuffed Shells- quite tasty! That's a recipe that never disappoints. Spent the evening eating, talking, laughing, and sharing stories. Great times.

Then, on Saturday, we went with Paul and Suzanne to Lowe's for some great end-of-season sales on trees! They bought some and so did we. The great part was that we all pitched in to help with the planting, which improved both of our landscapes. Later that night, we got together for a movie, and more good times.

Joseph and I spent Sunday working on getting the last tree planted, and a few other shrubs placed in the front beds. It's really starting to look more established around here, and not like we moved in yesterday. I continued working on my re-upholstery project. I'm making progress, and nearly have all the old covering removed. Soon will come the hard part of stapling the new pieces in place. I'm a little nervous about that.

I learned more about being married this weekend too. More communication about what our roles will be in this marriage. It's natural to bring with you an expectation of what your role will be in household activities based on what roles your parents played in their marriage. The tricky thing is deciding together how it will be in your own marriage. Well, no it's not really tricky, it just needs adequate attention. As long as it's discussed openly then there's no problem. Problem enters when you begin the activity with your own separate expectations of what the other is responsible for. The real attractive part about marriage is after discussing it, you reach a mutual agreement about what you want it to be like for your relationship. It's like deciding how you want to develop your own partnership. Walter Wangerin, Jr. describes this in his book, "As for Me and My House". He describes it as almost a third person in your marriage... you, your spouse, and "the relationship". The two of you then choose to nuture "the relationship", and can easily lay aside your own preferences for the betterment of the relationship. It removes the he wants/she wants struggle, and focuses the attention on what the relationship needs.

All that said, I'm happy with my life, and my marriage, and ready to start the new week.