Yep, he's definitely older! Can you believe it? 13 years ago I married this 21 year old stud muffin and now look and what happens. . . . we crank out a bunch of kids, he gets a REAL job, we build houses.
MAN life is crazy!
So, on this snowy winter morning, I can't help but be grateful that I have such a wonderful big guy!
Happy Birthday!!!
I LOVE YOU!
Sometimes it is really apparent to me that men must come from Mars and women must come from Venus! The way that we communicate is very different. . . . at least it is with Otto and I. Let me give you an example. . .
I just got my hair done and I told Otto via text:
OTTO: How's the hair appointment going?
ME: It was great
ME: (Sent him a picture)
OTTO: Awesome
Life went on that day and we chatted a couple of times. Usually Otto comments on my hair right away and I was getting kind of nervous that I hadn't heard anything from him. . . . so I mentioned it. As soon as I mentioned that Otto hadn't said anything about my hair, his eyes got really wide and he got really defensive telling me that he had already told me how much he liked my hair. When I told him that he hadn't, he whipped out his cell phone and showed me the above conversation.
I LAUGHED!!!
I saw that conversation as him saying that he was glad that I liked my hair and he thought that he had completely complimented me on my hair without ever seeing it. Even though it was just a cute, little miscommunication, it really reopened my eyes on how different the two of us are in our communicating and how I just need to remember his way and that it is so different from my own.
Sometimes it really does seem like we are on two different planets :)
Sometimes life throws you a curve ball. You get used to dodging the ones that come at you head on, but these curve balls can really throw you off course. Our curve ball came on Wednesday afternoon when Otto was informed that he had to be laid-off because there wasn't enough work. He was one of several people who were laid-off and there will be more people laid-off in January.
It came to us completely out of the blue and Otto didn't want to tell anyone at first, but now he has a game plan, a ton of contacts, lots of prayers behind him, and he feels as though it is okay that we tell people. So, consider yourself informed now.
I had a feeling that something was coming at us. We have been doing too good for quite a while now, and I know once you start getting comfortable, things start to go awry. We're okay. We have to make some adjustments, but I know that everything will work out fine. Otto has a lot of great contacts, he is a hard worker, and we have a ton of support.
So, we are adjusting. We are changing some of our plans, and we know that everything will work out for the best!
Funny, those curve balls can really shake things up!
Today is my Big Guy's birthday. I felt bad because I have committed to work tonight, but I wanted to do something special for his birthday because birthdays are special at our house. Because of this, I decided to do a special birthday breakfast. We all got up early, had strawberry Carmel stuffed french toast with whipped cream and peach preserves, fried ham and OJ. We sang Happy Birthday and had a Dulce de Leche cake and Otto got to open his presents.
My parents and grandparents gave Otto some gift cards for his birthday and it just so happened that Microsoft released a really cool gadget for the X-Box called a Kinect which makes it so you can play games, and interact with your X-Box using nothing but your body. You don't need a controller at all and you don't need a remote. You can say commands, scroll through menus, and play games without any other sort of accessories. Otto and I first saw some information about this sweet gadget about a year ago and I promised him that he would get one the day that it came out. . . .. and that day was today. . . . and he got one. . . . .Best Birthday Ever!!! I can't wait until he sets it up tonight! It is going to be so fun!
This weekend we had plnned a little get together with Otto's Mom, her husband, Otto's brother and his family, and Otto's sister and her family. We were planning on going to Waterton, but alas the weather and Otto's brother's back didn't cooperate so we had to come up with a plan B. Plan B consisted of going to Otto's Mom's house and helping her dejunk it. It was not as glorious as the original plan, but we still got to spend lots of time together and it was great.
That is not why I am writing this post, believe it or not. The reason that I am writing this post is because of the little treasure that we found when we were cleaning up at Otto's Mom's house. This little treasure came in the form of a cassette tape labeled "Babe's in Toyland". I was just going to put it with the other tapes when Otto completely went beserk and demanded that we keep it and take it home. I was startled that my big guy would get so emotional about "Babe's in Toyland", but it was important to him so it became important to me. I kind of chuckled when he told me that the reason that we needed to save the tape was because on the reverse side of the tape was recorded the song "Puff the Magic Dragon". Now that was all the convincing I needed, so the tape was saved from my Mother-in-law's house and taken to the home of the Comin's.
My Mother-In-Law lives about 2 1/2 hours away from our house, so it was quite the drive home last night. Finally, when all of the kiddies were settled in their seats I put the "Babe's in Toyland" tape into the cassette player in the van (yes our van is that old) and I was shocked to hear a child playing on the tape. Otto was not impressed and had a mini tantrom because he thought that his step-nephews had recorded over his beloved "Babe's in Toyland". There were no names on the cassette and so we didn't know who we were actually listening to. We were just about to turn off the cassette when all of a sudden we heard someone yell at the boy on the tape to "Come here!". We quickly rewinded the tape a bit and turned up the volume so that we could hear who it was being called. . . . .turns out we had been listening to Otto as a child.
The rest of the tape was a pleasure to listen to as we heard Otto playing robots with his friends in some parts, randomly spouting out numbers in other parts and counting by fives while he was waiting for his mom in other parts. Otto did think that the highlight of the tape was when all of a sudden the song "Puff the Magic Dragon" played and he realized that he had taped over everthing else on the tape except for his beloved dragon song.
It was so cute to listen to Otto as a child in Grade 4. How do we know that you ask? Well he did recite all of the people in his Grade 4 class picture which just happens to be posted on facebook right now.
They say you get blessings when you serve other people. Last night our blessing came in the form of a cassette tape which contained a little piece of information about what a day was like in the life of Otto when he was in Grade 4.
Thanks Kathy! That was the best little treasure you could have given us.
This Easter weekend, my cousin came into town and we had a chance to spend most of Saturday together. I had a blast. We went to a great restaurant for brunch and then we went shopping. I mean, can it get any better than that? We capped off our day at my Grandma Lee's house where we visited with our Grandma Lee for a little while. Then we went our seperate ways as she went out for dinner with her parents and I took my girlies to go see Monsters vs. Aliens (you HAVE to see this movie! I haven't laughed out loud at an animated movie in a long time. . . FABULOUS!!!).
Hanging out with Michelle and talking all day about relationships, really reminded me how much I love my Big Guy. I felt so nostalgic when we would talk about things that she is going through and it reminded me of what I went through when Otto and I were dating. I could remember the butterflies in my stomach when we would hold hands. I remember the heartache I felt when Otto told me that he wanted to date someone else. I remember the spiritual closeness I felt to my Heavenly Father when I spent an entire evening on my knees in prayer for comfort. It still amazes me what I had to go through, spiritually, at that time. I still can't believe that I was lucky enough to find my Big Guy when I was 19 and marry him.
We defied the statistics, and we have been through so much. But we are still best friends and we are still together and happy. It took us awhile to be completely comfortable with our roles in our marriage because we are a team. We do things together that a lot of spouses conquer seperately. Otto is so hands on with the kids that it lets me have a bit of freedom. People often ask me how I do it with 5 kids. And my reply is always that I have a wonderful hubby. I never complain about what kind of Daddy he is because I personally believe that he should win Father of the Year, every year. I think that my children are very fortunate to have Otto as their daddy and they just don't know how lucky they are.
So, thanks Michelle, for hanging out with me on Saturday. I had a blast! And, thanks for the reminder. I think that its good to get a little reminder about why you love the person you love every once in awhile.
This morning I was getting ready to drive the kiddies to school (I slept in not them) and I got a phone call from a friend of mine that I hadn't talked to in quite a few months. Here is what the conversation went like:
Friend :"Hey Megan, does Otto drive on (insert road name here) to get to work?"
Me: "yes"
Friend: "Does he drive a white truck?"
Me (a little bit worried): "Yes. . .why?"
Friend: "Well, I think that I just passed him while I was driving to physio. . . does he have a cell phone on him?"
Me: "No, why?"
Friend: "Well, he is sitting on the side of the road with the hood of the truck open and it looks as though he is having car troubles. I didn't see him in time to stop, but I wanted to call you and make sure that you knew what was going on."
Me (now panicked and worried): "Thanks for letting me know! I am leaving right now!"
So I threw all of the kiddies into the car and drove out to go help Otto. Once I got there he was still there (he had left 1 1/2 hours before that time so he had been sitting there for over an hour)and I was able to talk to him. I guess that he had gotten a flat tire on his way to work, and it took him about 45 minutes to change it (on the side of a major road!!!) and once he was done he went to turn on the truck but the battery had died because he had had his hazard lights on. So, finally someone stopped and they were on their way to get a portable charger because this was a one way road and it was too dangerous to turn a car around on it.
I felt terrible that my husband had been sitting there for so long. I knew that he had wanted to get to work early today to get things done and he ended up actually being an hour late.
I am also so grateful that my friend DID think to call me and let me know and that there was someone nice enough to stop and help out my big guy! I just don't know what it would have been like for Otto if neither of those two things had happened.
Anyways, he got all charged up and headed off to work and everything is all good. I am very grateful that I know people who would go out of their way to help others!
Today is the birthday of two people who are both very important to me. The first one is my Cousin Michelle. This is a big birthday for her and I am so sad that I am not closer to her so that I can go and pick her up and we can skip Young Women's and listen to Green Day in my van while head banging and drinking Slurpee's. Happy Birthday Beautiful Cousin!!
It is also my Big Guy's birthday. He is now 32 and I LOVE teasing him about being so old because I am not 30 yet, but I won't be able to do that much longer as I will be 30 this May. I have always said that I have been so lucky to have such a wonderful husband. We got married really young and we hadn't known each other for very long, but I knew that he was THE ONE!!! Otto is my very best friend. He is the best father I have ever known and I have never complained about how much he helps around the house or how much time he spends with the family because it seems as though he is always here, helping out. The kids have started to dread when Otto gets home from work because they say that he makes them clean, but I have to say that I really appreciate it because even though my house is never quite spotless, it isn't quite a pig sty either. I love that he is an engineer and so he fits into my family quite well. He gets along very well with my grandparents and my cousins. My hubby rarely complains about things and if he could just be with the kids all day he would do that.
I love how much time Otto sacrifices to come and support me when I am singing or performing. He is tone deaf and has never really had an incredible love for music like I have, but he has always made a point of making sure that I am involved in anything that I would like to be involved in.
My Big Guy is a wonderful example to my daughters of how their husbands should be when they are old enough to get married. He treats me and the kids wonderfully.
I sure hope that my hubby has a wonderful birthday and that he knows how much we love him!!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY BIG GUY!!!
Since I will have been married 10 years this September, I decided to answer this little interview that my sister-in-law posted on her blog:
What is his name... Otto to most people, and Big Guy to me
How long have we been together... we will have been married 10 years this September.
How long did you date... we dated for a lengthy 6 weeks before we were engaged! It seemed like FOREVER though!!!
Who eats more... Otto. . . thank goodness!
Who said I love you first... this was quite awhile ago, so I can't quite remember, but I am sure that Otto said it first!! I am kind of a traditionalist so I am sure that I waited until he said it first!
Who is taller... ummmm Otto. . . . there is a reason I call him my Big Guy
Who is smarter... I would have to say Otto because he has learned when to just say "Yes Dear!"
Who does laundry... it used to be Otto in our old house, but I actually quite enjoy doing the laundry, so if he brings it down for me, I will do it!
Who sleeps on the right... Otto does, and if it's after 4 am there is usually a kid or two there as well.
Who mows the lawn.... I do! I love to make it have cool lines! I used to work maintenance at a golf course so it is one of the things I learned to love!
Who cooks dinner... I pretty much cook every night. . . unless I am sick or not there. . . then it's usually Little Caesar's who cooks dinner.
Who drives... Me! It's safer for everyone if I do!
Who is the most stubborn... DEFINITELY ME!
Who kissed who first... He got me first. . . sneaky devil!
Who asked who out first... If you asked Otto, he would say that I tricked him into asking me out first. . . . but what man doesn't need a little prodding??
Who proposed... he did. . . . while we were emailing his mission companions. . . pretty romantic hey?
Who has more friends... OTTO!! Everywhere we go people know my Big Guy! It's actually pretty amazing! I, on the other hand, am quite the homebody and I just like to coop myself up in my little house and stay put.
Who is most sensitive... this question could be taken two ways, so I will answer it two ways. I am more emotionally sensitive and Otto is more sensitive to other's needs.
Who has more siblings... I win this one! Woot Woot!! Love you guys!!
Who wears the pants... I would say that we both do. . . but his are bigger!
Science Geek
My Narcoleptic Friend
Emily and
my Aunt Christie
You, my dears, have all been tagged! I can't wait to see what you come up with!!
Okay, so I knew that I probably needed to write something today and so I decided to go to the trusted journal starters again and this very interesting question was the question of the day:
Who is your complete opposite and what is that person like?
Honestly, the person that I thought of was Otto. We are very different people; for instance look at the difference between the answers to the following questions that I found on a dating site (I am really asking Otto these questions without him seeing my answers):
1 - What is your favorite color?
M - brown
O -blue
2 - What is your favorite hobby?
M- singing or playing the piano
O - playing video games
3 - What is your favorite food?
M - it changes all the time
O - roast beef
4 - Best job?
M - chef at a golf course
O - garbage man
5 - Favorite movie star?
M - Harrison Ford
O - Jason Statham
6 - Best way to relax
M - bath, chocolate and a magazine
O - playing video games
7 - Favorite thing to spend money on?
M - my kids
O - Megan
8 - Favorite toppings on a pizza?
M - tomato and feta cheese
O -- everything
9 - Bath or shower?
M - BATH
O - Shower
10 - Favorite Movie?
M - Cool Runnings
O - the Transporter
Okay, so not all of them are quite opposite, but most of them are. It has always been interesting to me that Otto are so completely different and our backgrounds are so completely different, and yet we are very compatable and we work quite well together. I think that that is because when it comes to the BIG things, like how we want to raise our kids, our future goals, our religious beliefs etc, we are almost always on the same page. And I think that another reason we get along so well is because we have accepted the things that make us so different from each other and we try and use them to make our family better.
I love my big guy. . . even if he is almost the complete opposite of me!
This is something that I have been thinking about all afternoon. I had been having a hard time yesterday and today because I am exhausted, my house is messy, I have tons to do because I put it off for after Camp Croppin', and I am a tad post partum hormonal!! Because of this yesterday and this morning were not so good.
Well, out of the blue, I got this phone call from my dear hubby asking me if I wanted to meet him for lunch since he now works only 10 minutes away. I decided that I would load up the two boys and go and meet him even though I knew that I would be giving up my nap before I had to start teaching piano lessons tonight and I was sooooooo tired!! Well, we met up with Otto and decided to go to Wendy's. It was nothing special, but being out and being with Otto and having a little break in my day was exactly what I needed. After I left, I was a completely different person. I was still able to catch a little 20 minute nap before my first piano lesson, and my entire afternoon was a 100% improvement over my morning.
I am so glad that I have a wonderful husband who knows me and who cares about me so much. He really saved the day. I had no idea how I was going to survive teaching 8 piano lessons in the mood that I was in. It has made me so glad that I married someone who is as thoughtful and amazing as my hubby!
I sure do love my big guy!!
You know, I have decided that I may not be a "Good Mom" at the moment, but I do have one saving grace. I married well. Whatever I lack in the motherhood department, my husband more than makes sure he covers in the fatherhood department.
Otto has taken this whole week off so that he could be at home to help me out. This has been the only time that he has been able to do that, and I am so grateful. I LOVE having Otto at home. It makes me wish that he didn't ever have to go to work. I know that some wives love to have their husbands go to work because they need the space, but honestly, if I could have Otto at home all the time, I would be the happiest person in the whole world. We are very different people, and for some reason it works for us. We have always been a team, especially when it has come to our children. I don't think that I could have ever asked for a better father for my children.
I always think that it is funny that my siblings think that Otto is a saint for being able to be married to me for so long. When Otto and I first got married, it was hard on both Otto and my siblings because of our different backgrounds. Otto is the baby of his family and so he was never used to having to be an example and watch the things that he said and watch his actions. My siblings had never had so much contact with someone who grew up with such a completely different background from us. It was hard for a couple of years, but as my siblings have gotten older, and Otto and I have made sure that we have been a part of their lives, the relationship between all of them is now wonderful. It is almost as though Otto has always been part of the family and my siblings see him as another brother.
I would have to say that the biggest compliment that I have gotten about my big guy came from my father this weekend. My dad and I were talking about life and changes and he told me that I should never worry about my finances because Otto is such a hard worker and he would make sure that we would never hurt ourselves financially. He said that he knew that Otto would take up a night job if he had to so that we could make our ends meet. I just thought that that was such a compliment that my dad doesn't worry about Otto and I and that he knows that Otto will always step up and take care of his family. I have always known that, but it does feel good to know that my parents know that, as well.
The reason that I have written this post is because I just feel blessed to have my big guy. We are having our 10 year anniversary this September and so I have spent alot of this year thinking about him and our lives together. I have NEVER complained about Otto as a husband and a father. I have NOTHING to complain about in that department. It is amazing to me when I look back at everything that we have been through together and I sometimes wonder how we have gotten through it all. I still don't have the answers to that, but I do know that it has made us stronger and grow closer, and my children are very lucky to have the father that they have!
Today is the 31st anniversary of the birth of my WONDERFUL husband. In other words today is Otto's 31st birthday. Yesterday we had a housewarming/birthday party for him. We had planned on spending the day cleaning and organizing everything, which we did, however we took our sweet time getting everything done. So when our friends came over, I continued to make appetizers while visiting with them. It ended up going over pretty good, and I didn't get any complaints about the food, so I guess that that's a plus!!
Because today is Otto's birthday, I have been thinking alot about him. I know that I can say just about anything I want to about it on here because he never reads it!! I was thinking about how his life was growing up. It was so different from mine. His background is totally different, and I have been thinking about that because I have realized that I am so grateful that Otto grew up the way that he did because it gives him a different perspective on things. There are things that we make sure we do because Otto did it when he was young like teach the kids how to ice skate, put bubble lights on our tree, (you will have to come to my house at Christmas time to see this. . . it's pretty cool!!), and visit the Crowsnest Pass every year so we can eat at a diner called Chris'. I am glad that we have these traditions and that we do these things because it lets the kids see a bit of how their father grew up. His upbringing is very different from theirs so I love it when he can tell them some of his memories of his childhood.
Today I am pretty much just grateful for my hubby. We got married when I was 19 and he was 21 and I know that it made my parents nervous. However, these past 9 years have been great. We have been blessed with 5 beautiful babies with number 6 on the way, and we have made it through some tough times. We have also had some wonderful times, including right now. I am so glad that I was able to find someone who could love me as much as Otto does and someone who could be such a wonderful dad to our children. I sure do love my big guy!!
